#the top right photo was on our last birthday together

[bonafidehero]

Been missing & thinking about you a lot lately 🖤

[dxckgrxsonx]

mrs ma’am… dick pic jason todd is driving me up the WALL!!! please a spare crumb of our idiots 🙏🙏

they're back!! i was having withdrawal symptoms from not writing them for so long. this turned out smuttier than i intended. whoops.

**

He’s bored.

The constant string of messages serves as a concrete confirmation that he’s got too much time on his hands and that his mind has started to wander.

Part of you doesn’t mind. It’s nice to have a distraction from the last minute birthday party bustling around you. But that other part of you–that almost constantly nervous part–is wondering what exactly he’s up to.

Leave him alone for too long and he turns into something mischievous.

It wouldn’t be the first time he’s found himself pulling a prank just because he’s nothing else to do.

First it was wrapping everything in your bedroom in tin foil. Second it was replacing all the photos in your apartment with pictures of Bob Ross. And the last prank he pulled was moving every single piece of furniture an inch to the left.

Your toes remind you of the pain that last prank caused and you’re quickly worried about what he might have planned this time.

It wouldn’t surprise you if he stole every single fork from your apartment and hid them in a stupid place. Hell, it wouldn’t faze you if you came home to find he’s changed the locks.

But you’re not expecting him to send you a photo.

The notification flashes up at the top of your screen and there’s a quick, sudden skip of your heart. You’ve found that it does that a lot lately when it comes to Jason. Found that there’s some niggling emotion you can’t quite unravel blooming behind your ribs.

He makes you nervous.

Hiding your phone from view you duck into a more quiet area of the party and open the message. A soft whine stumbles out from behind your teeth and you feel relentless heat kickstart in your gut.

He’s sprawled out on your bed.

And he’s got his hand wrapped around his cock.

Your mouth drops open and you almost start drooling at the sight of him. Between your legs aches and for a split second, you wonder if you could get away with rubbing one out right here. The fabric of your underwear starts getting damp, you feel it stick to the wet lips of your pussy and it’s just another sensation driving you half insane.

Jason’s hand can barely fit around his cock. The tips of his fingers almost don’t meet and you glance at your own hand, now filled with the knowledge that you would need to use both hands to jerk him off.

The head is flushed a deep red and the photo catches the slick shine of precum beading up from his slit. You want to taste him. You want him to taste you. Part of you can hardly breathe.

You: are you seriously jerking off in my fucking bed?? Jay: yup Jay: its a shame you're at that party Jay: i could've given you a show

An idea sparks white hot in your brain and there’s the edge of a smirk pulling at the corner of your mouth.

You: send me a video You: wanna watch you

Jason doesn’t reply and you shift from foot to foot. Impatient. Horny. Rubbing your thighs together to try and starve off the ache in your cunt, your eyes lock on the sign for the bathroom. Throwing a precautionary glance around you, you shift and beeline for the door, thankful that there’s no one lingering in the hall.

Locking yourself in a stall at the end you close the toilet seat and sit down, fingers drumming across your thigh.

Jay: sent a video

Opening it up you’re immediately greeted with a choked off moan. The camera shakes for the smallest second before it focuses and you feel yourself tighten up, feel your pussy leak an embarrassing amount of arousal into your underwear.

Stroking his cock from base to tip Jason’s hips kick up to meet his hand. All the muscles in his abdomen catch and release and the flex of them makes you sweat. Thick veins run up the underside of his shaft and when Jason drags his fingers over them, he twitches, cock slapping against his belly.

Spitting into his palm Jason fists the leaking tip and you watch as his spit runs down the length of him before dribbling over his balls. Squeezing at the head he groans and you whimper in response.

Fucking up into his tight fist you hear the wet squelch it makes and then, ever so softly, Jason says your name.

The video cuts off and you tip your head back.

You: you're trying to kill me aren't you?? You: all this because i ate the last of your cereal You: you should be ashamed

The bathroom door slams open and multiple giggling voices echo when your name is called out, “Are you in here? We’ve been looking everywhere for you. We’re cutting the cake, come on!”

“Yeah, I'm here. Give me a second.” You answer, trying to keep your voice level, even.

You: you're meeting me once this party is over right?? You: i'll save you some cake Jay: text me when you’re ready to leave and i’ll meet you outside Jay: i expect two pieces minimum to make up for eating my cereal Jay: anything less than that and i’ll remove all the towels from your apartment You: fuck you Todd You: also thanks for the video you look really pretty jerking off You: double also if you leave a mess on my bed i’ll kill you You:  🔪🔪🔪

**

[jflemings]

PROMPT 18 JFLEM

— out of the woods

prompt: 18 “i’m setting you free” from this post

a/n: i had this fic almost done and then tumblr deleted all of it and i waited too long to re write it so here’s a way more angsty version 🙂 also y’all can thank @pixiesfz for the angst. its jail time for the absolutely CRIMINAL jess angst that was posted xx

“you’re being ridiculous!”

“i’m being ridiculous? jesus christ jessie, you never even brought up the fact that you were thinking about moving to another fucking continent until you accepted the offer!” you exclaim loudly, anger simmering in your chest as you follow her into her bedroom.

you two had been going at it for the past hour and you were quickly running out of patience. she had brought up the topic of leaving chelsea a little while ago but you didn’t anticipate her moving to a whole different league, especially when the two of you seemed to be settling down.

“i didn’t think it would matter!” she says defensively, turning on her heel to face you “you were all for it when i brought it up before”

you scoff loudly “yeah, all for you moving to a different club in the wsl! jess how could you not bring this up with me?”

the canadian turns her back on you once again as she opens up her closet to grab some shirts she knows she won’t be wearing. she practically rips them off their hangers and carelessly throws them onto her bed “i didn’t think i needed to. it’s my future”

you’re taken aback by her justification. she’s right, it is her future, but considering the conversations the two of you have been having since the world cup you had assumed that you would be included in it, or at the very least spoken to about it.

the two of you had talked about moving in together and even gone as far as looking at places that were within your budget, so for her to suddenly drop the news that she was moving to the nwsl was coming from nowhere. or so you thought.

“how long had you been thinking about this?” you ask sternly

the midfielder sighs and throws another shirt onto her bed “since november”

your stomach drops and betrayal quickly puts out the flame of anger flicking within you. your brow furrows and your hands drop in defeat “november?” you question quietly “i was looking at places for us to live and you were thinking about leaving?!”

“it’s the best thing for my career!” she continues to argue as she turns around with her arms thrown out wide “it’s not a personal thing, y/n”

“what about the best thing for us” you ask bitterly “what about our future” your words are coated in venom as you speak to her, the hope of this turning into a civil conversation being thrown out the window.

she looks at you with a blank look on her face, the silence suddenly deafening you as the two of you stand just staring at eachother. the longer she takes to answer, the more sick you feel. you’ve always encouraged jessie to put herself first, always told her to follow her heart, but it seems like you had been stupid to assume that whatever road she took would always lead back to you. in your head, the future of your relationship was well and truely concrete: you’d move in together, get married, maybe have a kid or two and end up loving eachother for the rest of your time on earth.

jessie shuts her eyes tightly just as you feel your own well up with tears.

you had been wrong and she was proving it to you right now.

“right” you laugh bitterly, digging around in your purse for a polaroid photo that you carried everywhere. it was of the two of you sharing a drunk kiss at zećira’s for her birthday last year. sam had walked up to you with a polaroid camera mid-kiss and captured the alcohol fueled pda with a loud laugh. jessie had pulled away from you in a daze, her cheeks flushed and eyes glazed over without a care in the world that she had been caught on film in what she would call a compromising position.

you threw the photo onto her bed on top of the numerous shirts “since you’re packing up your life and throwing things away that you aren’t going to be needing you can take that. i don’t want it anymore” you say quietly, malice and hurt present in your tone.

jessie’s eyes widen as you turn on your heel “what are you doing”

“i’m setting you free” you say as you approach her bedroom door for the last time “hope portland has everything that london can’t give you”

[jostyriggslover96]

Holiday Traditions

Summary: Kira (OC) and Jack Hughes are hosting their first winter holiday together. Pressure is already on, but to top it off, it's the first time their families are meeting. Insert a winter storm that has other plans, what does this mean for the holidays? (Kira's thoughts are in italics). Part of the HEART FIRST Series, checkout Summer Rituals, Someone Unexpected, and Best Thing in My Life if you haven't already!

Note: Thank you for all the love this Jack Series has gotten! The plan was to have this out in December, but health issues had other plans. So here it is, I hope you enjoy! If anyone wants to be tagged in future Jack pieces, just let me know! Special thanks to @hockeyboysimagines @heavenlyhischier @grandprixbarzal for all their support with this fic!

Warnings: Swearing, anxiety, holiday celebrations, sweet sweet fluff.

Word Count: 3.7k

Holiday Traditions

I was a bundle of nerves as I paced the perimeter of the living room in Jack’s apartment. Why was I a bundle of nerves? With exams over, holiday shopping done, Jack’s apartment decorated to the nines, and delicious Christmas and Hanukkah goodies flooding the kitchen counter…everything was in place. There would be no last minute shopping or last minute baking or even last minute gift wrapping. But still, I was more nervous than ever. 

“Babe, it’s going to be fine,” Jack’s voice broke me from my trance. Glancing over my shoulder I noticed him standing at the edge of the hall, watching me. Watching me pace, shake my hands, and fiddle with my rings. 

“How can you say that?” I asked, my voice shaking as I turned to face him fully. His expression was warm, comforting. He didn’t have a worry in the world right now. In fact…he was smiling. 

“Well they’re our families, not total monsters,” he chuckled as he crossed the room and took a seat on the couch, legs spreading as he got comfortable. 

“But this is the first time they’re meeting, it’s a big deal!” I exclaimed. 

“They’ve met before,” Jack clarified. 

“FaceTime doesn’t count,” I scoffed, arms crossing as I rolled my eyes. Jack let out a deep chuckle again. Sometimes I wish I was that laid back. 

“Come here,” Jack commented as he patted the empty cushion beside him. Shuffling over to the couch and plopping down on the cushion, Jack didn’t give me much time to get comfortable as he pulled me into his lap. Shifting around slightly as his arms wrapped around my waist, I curled an arm under his shoulder before resting my head there too. “Are you nervous to see my family?”

Lifting my head, I gazed into his blue eyes, which were now drowning in concern. “No Jacky, I love your family! We had so much fun at thanksgiving, and Ellen has very good baby pictures of you,” I giggled. Jack let out a groan as he shook his head, clearly remembering his mom pulling out a photo album from her bag at thanksgiving to show his girlfriend. 

“I’m going to have to check her bags when she gets here,” he mumbled distantly, causing me to let out another giggle. 

“You were so cute Jacky! It’s not like my dad didn’t show you our family album when you came for my birthday,” I reminded him with a stern look. 

“I could get used to two thanksgivings,” he proclaimed with a content sigh. We both sat in silence for a moment. Comfortable in each other’s arms. “Now tell me pretty girl, what are you nervous about?”

I had almost forgotten about the tension I was feeling minutes earlier, Jack always knew how to soothe me. “I just want everyone to click, it would be nice to have holidays together,” I sighed as I stared at my hands which were fiddling with the silver ring on my middle finger. 

“Kira, our families already love each other. Our dad’s have plans to fish in the summer and our mom’s text all the time,” he reminds me, tilting my head back so I can see his reassuring smile. 

“You’re right Jacky,” I nod, a smile slowly forming on my lips. 

“Remind me why they’re all flying in together?” Jack questioned. 

“It was cheaper for my family to fly in and spend the night with your parents than to come directly to New Jersey,” I explained as I rested my head on his shoulder once more. 

“Oh right, and they land at 7:15?” 

“Yeah, they should be boarding…now,” I commented as I checked the clock on my phone. Dropping my phone behind me, I nuzzled closer to Jack, cherishing his warmth. 

“This will be a great holiday, and hey, we get to teach your family a little bit about Hanukkah too,” Jack whispered before pressing his lips gently to the top of my head. Just as Jack pulled you closer in his arms, giving my waist a squeeze, the perfect silence was broken between the two of us by a *ping* on Jack’s phone signaling that he just got a text. 

I felt him reach into the pocket of his sweats for his phone, a moment passed before he let out a “shit!”. 

“What?” I asked absentmindedly, eyes fluttering closed as I enjoyed his embrace. 

“Text from my mom ‘we have a problem, a snow storm came in fast. Flights are being grounded’” he read to me. 

My eyes flew open as I leaned back in his arms, “Well shit,” I exclaimed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jack and I spent what felt like hours sitting in silence once we understood the gravity of the situation. We would be alone for Christmas. That message took a while to sink in for me. There hasn’t been a single Christmas in my life that I have been away from my family. I know that would change as I got older but this year was unexpected. We would be alone for Christmas. 

It didn’t really sink in until a FaceTime call with my family who were cozy and settled in at the Hughes’ house. Of course my parents were disappointed about the circumstances but they seemed to be enjoying their time with Ellen and Jim. Even my brother was out playing hockey with Luke despite the treacherous snow storm. Hearing my dad discuss his blossoming friendship with Jim made my heart swell with joy. Dad friendships are the cutest. 

As I hung up the call with my family, the joy that filled my heart dissipated as my heart sunk once more. I’m so happy that my family will enjoy their Christmas with the Hughes’ family and that everyone seems to be meshing well, but I wanted to be there so badly.

There would be no Christmas baking or decorating the tree or driving around to see the lights. There wouldn’t be any overly competitive card games or sneaking cookies while my mom isn’t looking, or Christmas movies by the fire. There wouldn’t be any traditions this year. Nothing felt lonelier than that. 

~~~~~~~~

Wallowing in my despair, I buried myself further into Jack’s sheets as I stared blankly at the wall. My hope for the season of joy was fading quickly. Silence filled the room and my heart. Just as I was really about to spiral into the abyss of the holiday blues, the bedroom door flung open. 

“Kira, I have a surprise for you in the kitchen,” Jack’s melodious voice filled my ears. Somebody still had the holiday spirit. 

“No thank you,” I responded solemnly as I pulled the comforter up to my chin. With my back turned to Jack, I could still hear him shuffling around the room. He wasn’t exactly known for being quiet. Suddenly I felt the bed dip as Jack shifted his weight onto the mattress before a hand rested on my shoulder. 

“Babe, I know this isn’t the Christmas you wanted and you’re probably devastated not having your parents here. I think you’ll really like this surprise though,” Jack whispered soothingly as he gently rubbed my back. 

“I’ve never missed a Christmas with them Jack,” I whispered as hot tears stung my cheeks. Sniffling as I used the comforter to dry my eyes. 

“I know my love, it’s absolutely awful and I’m not trying to erase how you’re feeling. I remember my first Christmas without my parents, I cried into my pillow on Christmas Eve.”

Glancing over my shoulder I looked at Jack, trying to gauge if he was being honest. “Really?”

“Really.  I’ve never told anyone that. I just want you to know that you’re not alone,” he commented as he took the opportunity to pull me into his arms. 

“Thank you Jacky, truly,” I smiled as I wrapped my arms around him, enjoying as his warmth enveloped me. 

“I really think this surprise might help,” his breath danced across my skin as his lips pressed close to my ear. 

“Gosh, you and this surprise,” I groaned dramatically. Secretly curious to see what he had planned. Throwing my arms up in mockery, I rolled out of the bed and slipped on my slippers. Jack chuckled while I acted like a total drama queen as my mom would say. 

Shuffling out of the room, I let Jack lead me down the hall into the kitchen. Gasping as we turned the corner, I noticed all the baking ingredients were out on the counter paired with a rolling pin and cookie cutters. 

“Are we making cookies?” I turned to Jack in shock as he smiled back at me. He simply nodded to confirm my suspicions before another voice rang through the room. 

“You bet we are, can’t skip out on traditions,” I heard my mom’s voice. Glancing around the room, knowing she couldn’t be here, my eyes landed on the laptop on the counter. Making my way to the computer, I was overjoyed to see my mother’s smiling face on the screen. “I know we can’t be there sweetheart, but we can still be together.”

Tears welled in my eyes as I glanced back at Jack who was leaning against the wall, taking everything in. “You did all this?”

“He sure did, such a caring young man,” my dad chimed in from the laptop. Jack’s cheeks turned a flush shade of pink at the compliment from my dad. 

Reaching out for Jack, I wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug, signaling my gratitude. “Thank you Jacky,” I whispered in his ear. 

“Anything for you,” he pressed his lips to my temple as we stood in each other's arms for a moment. 

“Could we get started? I’m hungry,” I heard Luke groan from the computer. 

“Lucas!” Ellen scoffed at her youngest son. Pulling back from Jack I saw the whole scene unfolding. I couldn’t help but giggle as the youngest Hughes’ boy was being scolded. 

“Well are you going to stand there hugging each other or can we start?” My brother's voice questioned. I rolled my eyes as I pulled away from Jack, walking back to the counter to scold my brother. 

“Don’t be jealous that you don’t have anyone to snuggle up with right now,” I gently teased. My brother's eyes widened as everyone’s attention turned to him. 

“Whatever,” he scoffed as everyone let out a quiet snicker. 

“Okay, keep it together kids.” My mom declared as she corralled all of us. “Now let’s get started by everyone washing their hands,” she instructed as Jack and I moved to the sink. I couldn’t control my beaming smile as we all got to work on sugar cookie dough. This is what I wanted. This is what I loved about the season. Time with my family, and my new family too. 

~~~~~~~~

Everything went surprisingly smoothly as we all followed my mother’s careful instructions; although we did have a few burnt cookies. “It’s okay Jack, I always burn a few too,” my mom offered reassuringly. 

It didn’t feel that weird spending time with them over FaceTime, Jack and I didn’t miss a thing. We got to witness Luke and my brother tossing flour at each other much to Ellen’s dismay. We saw our fathers look perplexed as my mom explained how the mixer would knead the cookie dough for us. My mom even corrected Jack’s flour measuring technique as we got our dough together. “Jack, stop eating the dough, we won’t have enough for all these shapes,” I warned as I smacked his hand away from the mixing bowl. 

Jack never struck me as a baker, but he definitely held his own with me. We both seemed to enjoy the quality time together and with our families. 

The quality time didn’t end there, once the cookies were out of the oven and were cooling Jim announced that we would be lighting another candle on the menorah. Jack snuck a cookie before we got settled, “for quality assurance reasons.” I rolled my eyes as we settled on the couch before getting started. Jack had already explained some of his family’s Hanukkah traditions to me but getting to participate in them was extra special. 

As we all gathered around our Menorahs, Ellen took the time to share the story of Hanukkah with our family. Jack shared how the lighting of the Menorah works and why there were only a certain number of candles on the Menorah, as we weren’t on the 8th day of Hanukkah yet. My heart warmed as Jack, Ellen, Luke, and Jim said the blessing as we lit our candles. 

“There, like this,” Jack whispered to me as his hand wrapped around mine to guide me in lighting the candles. Jack’s simple reassurance calmed any remaining nerves that I was feeling. In fact, I felt closer to Jack in a different way, learning more about him and what’s important to his family. Our connection feels more…intimate now. All the sorrow I felt earlier in the day has completely faded. 

Once the menorah was lit, Ellen spoke a bit about what the meal they would traditionally share and how gifts were a part of the Hanukkah tradition. “Jack don’t worry, we’ll bring your gifts next time we’re in town,” Ellen reassured her son. 

Ellen even brought out her dreidel to show us, as I was inspecting it while she held it up to the camera, Jack whispered in my ear, “at least you don’t have to play dreidel with Quinn, he gets way too competitive.” Despite Jack trying to be quiet, Ellen still laughed, confirming that the oldest Hughes’ boy did get very invested in winning games of dreidel with his brothers. 

The whole experience of sharing Hanukkah with Jack’s family was beautiful, which I kept sharing with Ellen as I thanked her for including us while we decorated cookies. I could tell by Jack’s reactions that this was a really special experience for him too. While everyone was distracted, Ellen told me that Jack hasn’t ever brought someone over for Hanukkah. That alone made my feelings for Jack grow even more, if it were possible. Knowing that he cares about me, and hearing that validation for other people was everything. He is everything. Maybe it’s the season but I’m feeling stronger for Jack than ever…maybe even like I might be in love with him. 

~~~~~~~~~

Later on as we were winding down from our sugar highs, my dad announced we would be doing our traditional tree topping ‘ceremony’. 

“You have a whole ceremony?” Luke questioned as he was shoving another cookie in his mouth while my dad gathered the star for the tree. 

“We use the term ceremony loosely, you’ll see,” I explained as Jack gathered the star that we had purposely left off the tree for this moment with my family. 

Once everyone was ready my dad explained that our tradition was to discuss what brought us joy or hope in the holiday season before putting the star on the tree and ‘officially’ lighting it. 

“Oh, like sharing what you’re thankful for at Thanksgiving,” Jack exclaimed. 

“Exactly,” my dad smiled. We all went around sharing one by one something that brought us joy or hope during the holidays. It felt like it always did, just with more people to share it with. That brings me joy, I smiled to myself. 

“Kira, it’s your turn to share,” my dad prompted. 

“Okay,” I paused, noticing that everyone’s attention was on me. Slightly intimidating.  “Well, to be honest, I was pretty upset this afternoon when I heard that you wouldn’t be coming. But,” I took a moment to breathe and gather my thoughts. My heart was overflowing with gratitude at this moment. Jack pulled me a little closer as he held onto the star, before giving my waist a reassuring squeeze. “All of you have brought me joy in this season. Especially carrying on our traditions in any way we can and sharing them with each other. I just feel so lucky to be a part of all your traditions.” 

My breath caught in my throat as I felt a lump forming. Biting my lip to try to keep my composure, I almost lost it when Ellen said, “we are so happy to have you as part of our family Kira.” 

“Me too,” I choked out before we moved on to someone else sharing their holiday joy. It was true, this was my holiday joy, spending this day together. That’s just a testament to how much Jack cares, noticing how upset I was and coming up with such a special way for our families to spend the holidays together. Jack, and his family, are truly something special. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

After saying goodbye to our families, Jack and I sat cuddled on the couch as a random Christmas movie played in the background. Both of us were enjoying hot chocolate and each other, neither really focused on the movie. 

“Thank you for today,” I said as I sipped my hot chocolate. 

“You’re welcome babe,” Jack replied as he stared off at the TV. 

“No seriously, thank you,” I leaned forward to set my hot chocolate down before gently turning his face so he was focused on me. “Thank you for taking care of me and for being so thoughtful in putting something like this together. Jacky, this meant so much to me.”

“Kira, it killed me to see you upset today. I care about you so much and I would do anything to make you happy,” Jack’s eyes locked on mine and in that moment, I knew. I knew this man would care for me the way I needed. I knew without a doubt that Jack was different from any of the men before him. I knew what he meant to me. 

“Jacky, I know this is maybe too early for this,” I let out a shaky breath. Its now or never. “But I’m falling in love with you Jack,” I said before holding my breath, unsure of how he would react. 

Jack paused for a moment, deep in thought. “I know I’m young and have a lot of life left to live, but I know I have never felt this way before. Kira, I know I’m falling in love with you. I just feel lucky everyday that I get to call you mine.”

I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face. Jack Hughes is falling in love with me! “Can I kiss you now?” I questioned. 

“You know I’ll never say no to that,” Jack smirked as I practically pounced on him. Straddling his lap, my hands ghosted over his cheeks as I leaned in to capture his lips with my own. His soft lips floated over mine in perfect unison as all the feelings we’ve been holding in came out. Our lips engaged in a delicate dance as Jack’s hands burned on my skin as they ran down my back and cupped my butt. We were lost in each other, no sense of the world around us for what felt like forever, but in reality was probably a few minutes. 

Pulling back for air, we both sent each other looks that conveyed everything we were feeling. I, for one, have never felt so loved. “You know what might be fun?” I pecked Jack’s lips while posing my question. 

“What?” He chuckled at my giddy demeanor. 

“Starting a tradition of our own for Christmas,” I suggested. “Something fun!” 

“What about something adventurous?” Jack encouraged me. I nodded my head in agreement. 

“Maybe something we wouldn’t normally do.”

“What about….sex on the balcony?” Jack proposed while sending a suggestive smirk my way. 

“Seriously? It’s freezing,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes at him. 

“I’m kidding,” he let out a laugh at my unimpressed response. 

“Sure, you’re kidding. I’m not freezing my ass on the balcony for you,” my eyes narrowed as I sent a skeptical look his way. 

“I am kidding, I swear,” he quickly stopped giggling. Clearing his throat and adjusting me in his lap, as if he is getting serious. “What about going to the beach? I know it’s cold but it would be a nice walk.”

“Oh I love that idea Jacky!” I said in awe, his brain could flip from sex to something sweet like that in a second. He was truly something else. “Ooh!” I gasped in excitement. “Now you might not be into this idea but just hear me out.”

“Go on,” he urged me, now sending me a skeptical look. Unsure of what I was going to suggest. 

“What if we collected seashells and painted a few? We could create, like a jar and add to it every year,” I suggested hesitantly. I doubt Jack would be into painting seashells with me but it would be such a special memory. 

“Sure, I think that’s a great idea,” he responded, squeezing my hips softly. 

“Really?”

“Really,” he confirmed. “That would be a really special memory.” I let out a squeal of excitement before jumping off his lap and starting to create plans for our adventure tomorrow out loud. 

“You know, you’ve set the bar for holidays very high Mr Hughes,” I commented as I paused my planning for a moment. 

“Well I guess I better start planning for Valentine’s Day now,” Jack smirked from the couch. 

“Just so you know, I really love chocolate and champagne,” I quipped. 

“Just so you know, I’m a big fan of the color red…and lace,” Jack winked, his swagger sending shocks through my body. 

“Well, I will keep that in mind,” I replied as my smile turned into that of a Cheshire Cat. I have just the outfit that will drive Jack wild. Valentine’s Day would surely be one for the books. 

To think how quickly this day changed, how quickly it went from sorrow to joy. How quickly we went from no traditions to new traditions together. How we went from dating to falling in love. Really how quickly we went from strangers to more. Meeting Jack Hughes this summer changed my life in the best way. Now here we are, falling in love and starting new traditions together. My hope for  the future is that these traditions and our love continues to grow. 

[kanmom51]

Ahm... HAPPY BIRTHDAY JK

And happy JK day Jikookers.

What a morning to wake up to!!!

You open your eyes and this is what you are hit with.

The black and white couple in BLACK & WHITE.

Happy birthday Kookie indeed.

Yes, that was JM's hashtag: Happy birthday Kookie or Kookie's birthday, depending on your translator.

I am definitley still processing.

Well JM, you have definitely out done yourself.

Better than even this:

Ok then, did I not say that JM will not disappoint us? He NEVER does!!!

And yes. JM posted it to his account. Not a story. Not something that will be deleted or go away within 24 hours.

No.

JM posted this photo of the two of them in Connecticut on his IG timeline for forevers!!! Right next to his hot boyfie's Hot 100 post.

Yes JM, we know your boyfie is Hot and he's all yours. And you have now told us all just that. You claimed him!!! He is definitley yours.

Had a hoot reading the comments, lol. Someone asking if they are together, and the answers. Many answer yes (surprising), but then, the denial some people are in. Besties. Brothers. Ok then. 🤣🤣🤣 Those calling them besties are probably same ones that ignore Jikook moments, ot7-fy them, dismiss them, but now they are besties... Well, my partner is also my bestie, so...

Good thing my timeline is curated, lol. I cannot imagine the way the fandom is imploding. I think this is kind of a good description though:

So yeah, JM did not disappoint.

And dropping it at the start of the day for all of us to go nuts for the whole day too, lol.

Now, doing that, posting so early on (may I remind you that the last couple of years he posted toward the end of the birthday or even just after the day ended?), I cannot help wonder if there is more coming for us today...

I mean, JK's live, well an 9 minute live, an all new record for him. Funny how his records are how short his lives are, lol.

What do we know so far?

JK was out to dinner with others that he was practicing with.

Took photos with fans that saw him out.

Posted for his birthday on 31.8.23 at 23:55 or 11:55 pm.

Coming home, still in same outfit as he was eating out, JK goes live for 9 minutes. A new record low (well, apart from his Mingyu live), lol. Shorter than his panty folding live.

He was a man on a mission. Coming to say hi.

Showing us the 2 aces. Army. Yep.

Doing a card trick.

Saying love ya, a term used multiple time by JM.

And diving out of there.

So, I wonder.

First of all, was there someone there already or someone he was expecting to arrive?

Same someone that posted that mind blowing pic to set the fandom on fire.

JK's live was at 00:55 am KST. Going for 9 minutes approx. JM posted at 1:33 am KST. I wonder. I wonder if they picked out that photo together, lol.

Oh, I got sidetracked, didn't I?

Because my point was meant to be: Is this all we are getting this year?

No cake? No long karaoke live? No long live period? No TikTok post from our birthday boy, who told us he is now a TikTok content creator? No Jikook live?

I mean, JM's pic, well it's a gift. But is it gift enough?

And no, I'm not being greedy here talking about a gift for us. I'm talking about a gift for JK. Because JK wants that damn live together. Giving him that live together, that would definitely be a worthy gift for his birthday!! Lol.

Just saying...

Did I mention everything I wanted to? Probably not. I'm writing this off the top of my head rushing to post, cause I need for this to be out there, like 2 hours ago, lol.

Kind of hoping that as the day goes by there will be more to talk about. Kind of counting on it, lol.

Oh wait, did I mention JK was wearing same brand as JM?

Ooh, and forgot to mention that PolyC reposted JM's post:

And last thing before I go:

I just loooooove seeing that JM, can't help myself.

Ok, so this gif does not do the JM justice. Watch the live and see just how pronounced it is!!! LOOOOOOOVE it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KOOKIE!!!

[velvetandcandles]

“Just a little tipsy.” pt 1

Anime: Jujutsu kaisen 呪術廻戦

Character(s): Toji Fushiguro 伏黒甚爾

Summary: Reader comes home drunk and clumsy after celebrating her friends birthday party and Toji decides to help her settle down.

🌊🌀💦🔹

6:29pm

The silence of your empty home was abruptly interrupted by the front door swinging open with you stumbling your way inside. The sound of your keys jingled in your hand and your heels clacked against the floor while you tried to find something to support your poor balance. You managed to kick the door shut with the back of your heel before it could fully open, letting your keychain fall out of your hand and onto the floor. “Shit,” you cursed under your breath. Trying to collect yourself was useless - the alcohol had fully taken its toll on you at this point.

You tried your best to remember how much you drank at your best friend’s birthday party, but gave up as your head was way too static to even process anything. Since your boyfriend, Toji, was still out, you thought you’d try to get unready and be fast sleep by the time he got home. You had forgotten to mention anything to him and just knew you wouldn’t have the energy to explain everything later on.

You would have been able to tell him if he didn’t beat you to leaving the house.

You sighed before attempting to take a step toward the bathroom, only for your hands and knees to meet the cold hard floor with a loud thud. Your eyes squinted and you pursed your lips trying to ignore the pain and decided it’d be best to crawl your way there.

:::

The night before…

It was 10:42pm and you sat comfortably with your legs folded across the couch, mindlessly scrolling on your laptop while speaking with your long-time best friend on the line. Toji was fast asleep in the bedroom, and you didn’t want to wake him.

“..I don’t want to see you dressed like your boyfriend, y’know.” Your friend laughed. “There’s gonna be lots of people, alright? So I want you to come looking prettier than ever.”

You paused to think of anything in your closet that would be appropriate to wear. It’s been a while since you’ve went to any large events or parties. You thought that those days were over, honestly. Thinking of every piece of cloth that you owned, it made you realize how much you’ve adapted Toji’s style. She was right.

“I just don’t know what to wear.” You said.

“If you don’t have anything sexy to wear, I can let you borrow one of my dresses. I’ll do your hair too, if need be. Do you like makeup?”

“No, no, it’s alright. You don’t have to worry about me. You’re the birthday girl after all so- just focus on getting yourself prepar-“

“Nope!! You’re coming and I’m not going to let you ruin our group photos. I’ll be picking you up tomorrow morning and we can get ready together!”

That was the last of the exchange before you heard a click and the sound of ringing in your ear.

Then, a text notification popped up at the top of your phone.

‘btw your boyfriend can come if he wants✌️’

::::

After what felt like years of dragging yourself, you finally made your way to the entrance of the bathroom. Just as you were about to lift yourself to reach for the light, the switch had already been flicked on, revealing not only you, but the person who had been there the entire time.

“..you alright..?” Toji asked, visible concern on his face. “And where have you been all day?”

It sent your heart into your stomach as you weren’t expecting him to be there. He stood behind you, waiting for an answer. You slowly turned yourself around and slumped yourself against the doorway, feeling defeated. He wasn’t sure if he should be worried or if he should laugh at how stupid you look. You thought you had gotten used to him sneaking up on you like this and was proven wrong in an instant. He makes it impossible for you to be able to sense his presence at all - it’s like he has some sort of gift or something.

You did your best to gather your words.

“Yeahh jus’was gonna..get unready here.” You lazily pointed to the shower. Realizing how slurred together your words came out, you looked down and chuckled to yourself in embarrassment. Toji hummed and squatted down next to you to observe the obvious state you were in. He sat there, waiting for you to give a better answer, wondering if you actually thought he was stupid.

“Fine. I’m..just a little tipsy..” You shrugged. Before he could open his mouth to ask any more questions, you scrambled for something else to talk about.

“I thought you had a bunch of errands to run? How are you back at this time?”

“Finished early. Here.” He stood up and put his hands out. You take his large hands and push yourself up with your legs. He keeps a tight hold on you and watches you get up to make sure you don’t fall. Once you’re fully up, he gets a better look at you:

He noticed your hair had been nicely styled. It was beautifully curled, and the way those curtain bangs covered your face when you turned your head a certain way almost made him sway. Toji’s eyes couldn’t help but wander. He looked you down and noticed you had on a dress that stopped just a little below your rear. He’s never seen you in that before, let alone all ‘dolled up’ and ‘girly’. He was so used to seeing you dress comfortably. How could such a small dress hug your body so perfectly? He was impressed at how it even managed to not ride its way up, as if it were made and tailored specifically for you. Still, he stared as you pointlessly tugged at the bottom of the dress to lower it, his eyes now shamelessly traveling down your exposed thighs. He’d be lying if he said you didn’t look amazing right now, even in the drunk state that you’re in. Hell, he thinks it’s a plus.

He was snapped out of his trance when you patted his chest and smiled, not even realizing you had let go of both his hands. “Thank you.” You said.

He stood there and watched as you made another feeble attempt to walk on your own, ultimately tripping over a floor tile - only this time, your fall was completely halted by his arm wrapping around your waist. It made your heart flutter.

He let out a low laugh. “..’Just a little tipsy’?” You laughed sheepishly in response before your feet were suddenly lifted off the floor and your stomach was placed over his shoulders. You suddenly felt so much relief in your toes after Toji took it upon himself to remove your heels and toss them to the ground.

“Let’s get you all settled down.” He said. You jolted when you felt his hand strike your butt and the sting shot up your back, making you suck your teeth. “Ow- Toji, I told you not too hard!” You frowned and slapped his back as a warning. To him, your small hands felt like pillows. He always thought your small fits were cute.

He began to make his way toward the bedroom with you bent over his right shoulder. Even though you couldn’t see his face, you just knew he had a stupid smug look plastered across his lips.

🔹🌀🔹🌀

Toji carried your limp body to the dimly lit bedroom you both share. The trip on the way there wasn’t a good one. Having to watch the ground move with your stomach pressed against his shoulder while drunk was so uncomfortable. You almost felt yourself throw up twice.

He lifted you off his shoulders, carelessly plopping you on the bed. “I’ve got a lotta questions for you.” He paused, unsure of where to even start. “..How the hell did this happen?”

You tossed your forearm over your forehead feeling nothing but dizziness from the impact. “Was with friend, birthday celebration, prolly drank too much, forgot to tell you.” That was all you managed to get out.

“Was it her who dropped you off?”

“Mhmm.” You weakly nodded.

Toji let out a small puff of air and rubbed the back of his head. He was just relieved that at least you returned home safely - and thank goodness it was with another woman. On the other hand, he was still a little frustrated. A little..jealous.

He loves you regardless of how you choose to present yourself, but he’s so used to seeing you in sweatpants, a T-shirt and a ponytail. How come your little friend got to see you all dressed like this before he did? Not only that, but there might’ve been other guys at that party too. Toji could only imagine how many of those animals likely attempted to shoot their shot at you. They always do. And you shoot them down every time, which is why he loves you. Still, it’s the simple fact that other men even think they have a chance with you in the first place that brings Toji to disgust. He didn’t want to think too deeply about it though. It’ll ruin his mood.

Hearing how half-assed and blurred your speech sounded, he figured he’d save all his questions for later and focus on getting you comfortable first. ~ part 2 🌊

[daisyblog]

Love at Wembley

Our Story Masterlist Summary: Harry asks YN to marry him at Wembley.

In the last twelve years, Harry had learnt a lot about YN. He’d learnt that she still needs a cup of tea before bed to fall asleep, or she’s up until the early morning tossing and turning.

He knows she still blasts One Directions and all their solo songs at every opportunity she gets, singing all the words and nagging both Harry and Louis about when they were going to get back together.

Her favourite song to listen to when she’s having a sad day or when she misses her Mum and sister even more is Angels by Robbie Williams.

Louis was her rock, they don’t go a day without talking or at-least texting each other. She doted on him and vice verse and Harry often feared how much she told Louis about their relationship, because if YN was anything shy didn’t cover it.

On the subject of not being shy, their sex life had only grown and got better as they aged. Harry had learnt that her favourite position was between doggy-style or missionary with Harry’s hand around her neck in a loose hold.

Another thing that Harry had learnt was that YN disliked anything that was romantically cringey, like being proposed to in Paris. Her words being “It’s just not special, everyone gets proposed to there” whilst watching a Tik Tok of a couple getting engaged whilst standing near the Eiffel Tower. Harry made a mental note of never proposing in a popular engagement location.

This brings him to this moment where he is walking through London with Louis and Jeff on his way to choose a ring for YN. He’s known for the last twelve years he wanted to marry her. But with fame, touring and losing important people, it never seemed like the right time to pop the question.

As they walk into the store that Harry has been researching for what feels like years. They’re met with more options than they imagined. He thinks back to the day he asked Louis permission to marry YN, because if he wanted anyone’s blessing it was his.

---

They were visiting Doncaster one weekend for the twins birthday and after the busy day of celebrating the twins turning nineteen, with lots of food, family, friends, Louis and Harry had found themselves sitting out in the garden together.

As Louis took a drag from the white stick he held between his fingers, Harry breaks the silence “I..uh…I wanna ask you something”.

Louis tilts his head to look at him and blows the smoke out from his lungs and flicks some ash off his cigarette end before responding “You can ask me anything mate”

Harry nervously turned his rings on his fingers, Louis hadn’t seen him this nervous for a long time. “I wanna ask YN to marry me…and…I guess what I’m trying to ask is for your permission”.

Louis took another long drag from the white stick, before blowing the smoke out in front of him and then scratching his cheek with his thumb and tried his best to keep a serious expression. Harry still anxiously twisting the rings that sat on his fingers.

Letting out a sigh, “All I can say is…it’s about fookin’ time man”, causing both men to look at each other and let out a laugh. “No ‘onestly you have my permission, blessing and whatever else you need”.

---

Bringing Harry back to the moment of where the three men sat in a consultation room, looking at the few options they had chosen. Louis had already said which one he thought YN would love. Jeff stating that YN would say ‘yes’ even if Harry proposed with a Haribo ring.

Harry stared down at the ring that sat delicately in the box in front of him. The small band held a diamond on top with a touch of green. He didn’t understand why Louis would be so adamant that YN would love this one.

“I still don’t understand why you think this is the one” Harry spoke with a tad of stress in his voice, picking up the box that held the ring to study it more.

Louis and Jeff shared a look before Louis let out an annoyed sigh. “Mate…please just listen to me…Lottie literally sent me all the photos of engagement rings that YN has sent to her of the last few years…and guess what they’ve all had a touch of green in them”.

Harry nervously played with his bottom lip with his fingers “Why green..I just don’t kno-“

Interrupting him, Jeff intervened “H..when you look in the mirror..what do you see?”

Harry look at his manager and friend with a scowl, confused by the questions.

“Uh myself” Harry sarcastically replied.

“And what do you look at yourself with?” Louis prompted.

Harry took a moment to think, before he had a lightbulb moment “Uhh..my eyes”. Louis and Jeff stared at him waiting for the moment where it clicked. “My eyes are green”.

“Well done Mate…you got there in the fookin’ end” Louis sarcastically said, earning a nudge from Harry. Harry couldn’t wipe the grin off his face at the new fact he had learnt. YN wanted a green ring to represent the colour of his eyes. How romantic. “She’s romantic and soppy when she wants to be”.

---

Harry wanted the moment to be special but with the last leg of the tour underway it was proving to be difficult. He wanted the moment to be just YN and him, but being on tour it was rare for them to have a moment to themselves.

He debated popping the question whilst he had a show in Coventry, as it was the first show in the UK but something was telling him it just wasn't the right moment. He considered asking her in Paris, but then remembered she hated the thought of it being in a popular location. He began to believe there was no right place, but being inside Wembley Stadium made him realise that this is where it all began for him. If he didn't go to an audition, he wouldn't have met the love of his life.

Anne, Des and Gemma had arrived along with Harry's auntie, uncle and cousins. They all knew Harry had planned to ask YN today, ahead of the show, but the suspence was eating at them.

There was a quiet spell before the opening acts took to the stage. Harry took this as his opportunity "Babe...will you come with me to the stage a second?". Anne and Gemma sent him an excited grin as Teddy was cuddled up on Gemma's lap, knowing this was the moment they had been waiting for, for the last twelve years.

YN followed Harry out to the hallway as they made their way to the stage, Harry's arms slung over her shoulder and the little box discreetly hidden in his short pockets.

As the walked out and took in the empty stadium, before the room was about to be filled, Harry stood behind YN, his arms wrapped around her front resting across her collarbones.

"I'm so proud of you Bubs" YN began as she leaned back into his hold "Four nights in Wembley..you've absolutely fookin' smashed it"

Harry leaned down a pressed a kiss to her cheek "It all started here for me..and to be back just feels so fucking incredible".

"It's crazy to think that if you and Louis didn't audition that year...we wouldn't even know eachother" YN thought out loud, her hands reaching up to hold onto Harry's that were still wrapped around her "Fook...I don't even want to think about that". YN reached in her pocket for her phone "Let's take a photo..I wanna remember this moment".

After YN snapped the selfie of her and Harry, she studied the photo for a second, before turning to show Harry. As she turned, she realised Harry was no longer standing behind her, but knelt down on one knee with a black box in his hand, holding the little ring that was about to be on her finger. Capturing the moment, Lloyd was hiding behind one of the black boxes, positioned to the side of the stage.

For once, YN stood still and speechless. Harry began the speech he had rehearsed in his head for the last few weeks.

"YN..baby..it's been twelve years since I made you mine and my life has never been better...I would love to let you know all the reasons why I love you...I love you because you make me laugh when I needed it most...I love you because you inspire me to be a better person...I love you because you are extremely patient with me during my lowest points...I love you because you are an amazing sister who loves and takes care of your family...I love you because I know you’ll also be a great mother to our children someday...I love you because you have dreams and you’re not afraid to go after it...I love you because you dare to be yourself and own who you are...I love you because of how the light shines each morning together...I love you because of how comfortable silence can be, with you...and most importantly, I love you so much that I’ll want to be with you forever and I hope you’ll say yes. Will you marry me baby?"

Tears flowed down YN's face, Harry had always made her feel loved and wanted but listening to him list all the things he loves about her, was overwhelming. YN leant down and held Harry's cheeks as she kissed him deeply. Lips moving together, YN mumbled "Yes".

Standing up, Harry took the ring from the box and placed it on YN's finger, both admiring the start of their commitment to each other. "You're gonna be Mrs Styles".

"And I can't fookin' wait" YN excitedly announced, before Harry cupped her face and brought her in for another kiss. Their lips together in sync, YN's top lip being squeezed between Harry's as he deepened the kiss and moving his hand to sit at the bottom of her back to pull her even closer.

Pulling apart, but their hands still attached to one another, they couldn't wipe the smiles from their faces. "I love you"

"I love you more...Mrs Styles to be"

liked by louist91, thephoebetomlinson, and 2,543,224 others

yntomlinson and harrystyles Mr and Mrs Styles to be👰🏻‍♀️🤵🏻 View all 15,677 comments

annetwist Congratulations my Darlings ❤️ I can now officially call you my daughter-in-law xx

jefezoff Congratulations Lovebirds!

mitchrowland Congrats guys!

gemmastyles I've finally got a sister 💕 Congratulations to my faves xx

niallhoran Finally!! Will I be bridesmaid or groomsman?😂

louist91 12 years too late!! Happy for you both xx

lottietomlinson I can't wait for the wedding prep! Love you both 🫶🏼🖤

the.daisytomlinson my sis is getting married 🤍

thephoebetomlinson omg! Sooooo excited😆

lloyddddddddddddddddd Congratulations! So glad I got to capture the moment.

pillowpersonpp The dream couple! Congratulations both

bradgouldtraining Yessss! Absolutely buzzing for you both ✌🏼

madidiaz Cuties! Congratulations both❤️

Tag List: (let me know if you would like to be added) @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @harrys-flower @platinumbarbie143 @frickin-bats @harrysbbyh0ney fanfictioncafe lilfreakjez jerseygirlinca iamahallucinationnn @chronicallybubbly @goldensunflowe-r  @walkingintheheartbreaksatellite @kaverichauhan @peterholland04 @panicattheuc @indierockgirrl @hittiesontour @or-was-it-just-a-dream

[outsideratheart]

1 Decorating the tree with laia aleixandri

A/N: Day one of the Christmas advent calendar.

Laia had been dropping not so subtle hints at wanting you to spend Christmas in Spain with her since you put the Halloween decorations away. At first she started to talk about the future and how your Christmas’ would look together and then when her parents visited Madrid they just so happened to bring some photo albums with them. You were excited because you loved seeing photos of baby Laia but when you saw the cover of the album, the one which was covered in red and green and had a huge Christmas tree on the front, you knew Laia had brought in reinforcements.

In the end you said yes, it wasn’t as if she had to persuade you that much. All you wanted her to do was ask you and not drop hints. You needed to hear her say the question so that you knew it really was what she wanted.

You wasn’t sure what the rules are in Spain. When do they put up their trees, when do they start decorating the house? This was the first Christmas you would be spending in Laia’s apartment which was now technically your apartment too.

You had stayed back at training with Lola to practice set pieces whilst your girlfriend left at a reasonable time along with the rest of the team. You opted out of showering at the facility in favour of wanting to get home as soon as possible.

Safe to say the last thing you expected to see was Laia on the living room floor surrounded by every type of Christmas decorations.

“Baby, what are you doing? It isn’t even December or do the Spanish decorate in November” you tease as you steal a kiss before getting a glass of water from the kitchen.

“I’m decorating”

You salute for her for being captain obvious.

“You asked and we have training, you have that Cupra event in Barcelona then we play Seville the weekend of the 1st. Now is the only time we can do it”

They were valid points and it wasn’t that you didn’t want to decorate, it’s just that you had planned to spend the night of the sofa cuddling with your girlfriend.

You walk away to get a shower.

“Hey! You can’t leave me to do it alone. This is our apartment now” Laia stands and chases after you.

“Calm down Mi Amor. I’m sweaty so I’m going to shower. Care to join me?” With your arms around her waist, you pull her close.

“Y/N I have too much organising to do” she kisses your nose before running back to her place in the living room.

You can only laugh as you leave her to do her organising.

When you emerge from the bedroom half an hour later you are shocked to see double the amount of decorations.

“I may have only lived here for just over 10 months but where on earth have you been hiding all of this?” You move some of the stuff to the floor so you can sit on the sofa.

“I’d tell you but it’s where I hide your birthday presents so…” Laia pretends to zip her lips.

She then proceeds to give you a to do list. With your eyes wide you count 11 tasks.

“Build tree. Decorate the top of tree that my amazing girlfriend can’t reach” you raise your eyebrows are her self compliment “hang Christmas lights”

“Vale. You have a long list but it’s only the things I can’t do” Laia tries to defend herself.

“And you want all of this done by….”

“Tonight. Don’t look at me like that, we have a game tomorrow”

“Well then we better get started. I take it ‘put the Christmas music on’ is on your list?” You ask and Laia nods enthusiastically.

With a mixture of both English and Spanish music playing in the background you and Laia both work through you lists, laughing and joking around as you do so.

The last thing you both do is decorate the tree as this is something that you can do together. Laia opens the box full of decorations. Some of the baubles are basic and traditional, others are from Laia childhood that her parents had given her.

It takes 45 minutes to get the tree just right. You and Laia dramatically collapse on the sofa as you admire your hard work. The apartment was perfect, it wasn’t over the top but it definetly had the Christmas spirit.

“It’s perfect” Laia tells you as she snuggles into your side.

“Wait” you rush to your feet and run to the bedroom.

Laia hears you rumbling around in your draws and mumbling to yourself.

“One more thing to add to the tree” you open the box and show Laia.

Inside the box was a ball shaped bauble with the inscription ‘our first Christmas” with the year below it.

Laia places it at the front and in the middle of the tree so everyone can see it.

In the weeks that followed, Laia showed everyone the bauble and told them that you planned on starting your own collection and that this one was the first of many.

[joe9cool]

Collide-Justin Herbert-40 The End

A/N: This is fanfiction, I do not know or own the Chargers. Also you do not have my permission to post my stories. 

June 29th, 2023

Sara woke up to a cold, empty bed. Well, not really empty. Eugene was right above her head, while Nova liked to be at her feet. She looked over at the time 7:30am. She just had just got in a a couple nights ago from filming in North Carolina, as much as she loved the show and her castmates, it was exhausting filming overnights and taking three hours for one scene, only for the writers to tweak something.

She had a few days off, then another week of filming, and then two weeks for pre press for the film. Her phone was already loaded with social media shoutouts and texts, all wishing her a happy 27th Birthday. She smiled as she looked at all of the funny birthday tributes that her friends from Pittsburgh and LA posted. Sara's heart melted as she got a long written message from Holly saying how glad she was to have her in Justin's life.

Speaking of him, he was probably at the training center getting his therapy in. He told her he wanted to take her to dinner but she kept refusing, as she got older she didn't care about the fancy parties or the lavish gifts, she just wanted a cozy night in with the man she loved.

Sara laid there for a few more minutes before her mini tigers let out their cries for food. Her stomach was sending out the signal as well, so she got up and padded to the kitchen. When she walked into the open room she didn't expect to see a bunch of roses and balloons, with big silver balloons in the number 27. She looked around in shock. On the counter, there were three wrapped boxes, with a plate of chocolate chip pancakes. Approaching the counter, she saw the note

Happy Birthday my love! I'll see you in a few hours!

-Justin.

She smiled, before smelling the pink roses. Looking at the cats she smiled. "Your father is the sweetest." They mowed as to say 'yeah but our breakfast'

She scratched their heads. "Okay I'll feed you guys first then I'll open the gifts." She got out all of their raw ingredients that she picked up from Erewhon. (she spent a fortune and Justin made fun of her) While they were chowing down their bowls of food she opened the gifts. The first was an all inclusive spa package, the next was a Burberry purse that she had bookmarked on her laptop. She laughed, she knew he was snooping. Then there was the brand new espresso machine that was set up. Sara squealed, Justin wasn't much of a coffee drinker, but hopefully she could make some drinks he would like.

The next was one of sentimental value, it was a book that contained all of their photos together. They were some goofy ones, ones that Holly took of them in the hottub from their quick trip to Eugene last month. There were two of them caught by photographers. One of them leaving the sushi restaurant and another one of them walking the cats around her place. Sara laughed at that one. Then there were the photos of them at Bella's birthday party at Jerry's. She made a note to go back there again.

The last pages had her tearing up. It was a professional photos of them at Joe's wedding. One of them was a group shot of them standing with others. Next one was a candid of them talking at the bar, she didn't even know there were photos of that.

There was a note written in Justin’s neat handwriting that she envied.

July 16th 2022

I laid eyes on you for the first time

I'll never forget that night.

The very last page

27 things I love about you.

Your love for animals (particularly our cats)

Your passion for what's right.

How you know what and when to say the right things

The love you have for your friends and family

You never give up

Your emotional strength

It kept going, some were sweet, some were funny, and some were dirty and referred to her skills in the bedroom. Overall it was the sweetest gift any partner had given her and topped all of the other gifts.

She was finishing her breakfast and rereading Justin's letter. She asked Heidi to take care of social media on her bday. This way it was stress free for her.

AnnSophie and Samira walked in, leaving Sara confused. "Not that I'm not glad to see you guys. But how did you get in?"

"Well first of all, happy birthday, second Justin said we could kidnap you for the full spa day thing." AnnSophie spoke as she pet Nova. "I'm not going to say no to a spa."

Samira laughed. "Also we got to get you ready for tonight's-" Annie cut in. "For dinner, Justin wanted to take you somewhere nice."

Sara shrugged, "I mean I'd be happy ordering Indian and having a movie night with the cats but." She put the dishes in the sink. "Where's Lexi?"

"Joseph is watching her." Both her and Samira looked at AnnSophie. "What?"

"Wasn't aware you trusted Joey Like that." Sara shook her head. "He's great with her for your information. It's nice to have a friend. Now excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom." AnnSophie walked, more like limping to the bathroom, and the other girls looked at each other. Once they heard the door closed they began giggling.

"Yeah he's a friend alright."

"Looking a little too relaxed"

—------------------------------------------------------------

"That is the sweetest thing!" The girls cooed over Sara's telling of the birthday photo album Justin gave her. She had messaged him saying thank you. He hadn't responded, but she didn't expect him to.

They were having lunch at her favorite spot in the center of Calabasas after the spa. A few paps spotted them and began taking pictures, wishing her a happy birthday, and asking about her plans later.

While she was getting her pedicure she made a call to the poverty stricken areas of Pittsburgh and Los Angeles. Each grocery store she donated $27,000 to cover low income shoppers groceries. She didn't want any fuss or announcement, but of course the company put out a massive thank you that got to the public. Sara didn't want to make a massive deal out of it.

She had responded to friends and family and thought it was weird that her sisters hadn't called her. It was a usual tradition that she had gotten calls from everyone. Including Aunt Willa, well that wouldn't happen since the order of protection was put in place.

As they enjoyed their lunch, Sara got another call from Bella who she put on speaker. "Hey babes."

"Happy Birthday baby!" Her friend sang and Sara laughed. "What are you doing on this fine day?"

"I'm having lunch with Annie and Samira right now?"

"At the hotspot?" Sara was confused. "Am I that predictable?" She felt a presence behind her and assumed it was a waiter. "I'm right behind you." She whipped her head around to see Bella on her phone.

"Bitch! Everyone squealed. Causing the other people to look. She wrapped the supermodel in a tight hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I've missed the last one, I'm not missing this one." Bella exchanged hugs with the other girls and sat down.

This was already shaping up to be the best birthday

—------------------------------------------------------------

"Sara.. god. . Please." Justin whimpered as she kept her pace on top of him.

He was not even home for ten minutes before his girlfriend was on him practically jumping him. "Thank you so much!" She spoke between kisses. "I am missing one thing."

He furrowed his eyebrows "what?"

"Birthday sex, birthday sex." She sang as her hands went to his shorts. He laughed. "Babe, I got to shower, I came straight from practice."

"Well we will just shower together then." Immediately stepping out of her summer dress and sandals. "We sat outside and it's hot." That was one of the downsides of her birthday being June. It was always going to be a scorcher no matter where she was. Maybe they should go to Iceland next year.

Once their clothes were off, Justin carried her into the bathroom. The water was cooler than what she was used to, but she knew her and Justin were going to be busy.

"You know it's your birthday right?" He breathed as she kissed down his stomach and got to her knees. She gripped his erection and began placing kisses on it to which Justin had an immediate reaction. "It's my birthday, and I want to suck your dick. I want your cum on my face. Will you give me that for my birthday?"

Justin moaned as she took him back into her mouth. "I can't say no to the birthday girl can I?" He fell back against the shower wall as Sara worked her magic with her mouth. He put his hands on the sides of her face and guided her, gagging when he reached the back of her throat. "Sara." He moaned as he reached go grab and handful of her breast. "I'm gonna cum." Quickly, she pulled off and pumped him until he finished all over her face.

Once they finished their shower Justin thought that would be the end of it until after his final surprise. However he didn't get a chance to dry off before she was on him riding him.

"Oh Justin!" She squealed as he began thrusting upwards. As much as he was enjoying the amazing view they had to get ready for their dinner plans. Finally she reached her climax and dragged him along. Sara collapsed on top of him and they had a few minutes to catch their breath before he made them get up and get ready. "It's my birthday and I want to stay in." She pouted. Justin laughed. "I promise I'll make it worth it."  She put her mascara tube on the counter and walked up to him hugging him. "You have already done enough today." He bent down and kissed her, getting the sticky lip gloss on his lips. "You deserve it."

They managed to make it to their reservation on time. Learning from the last time they went to dinner, Justin reserved a private room. Justin made Sara enter the room first.

"SURPRISE!!" She was Startled when she turned the lights on and saw the faces of friends and family. There were her parents, her sisters, nieces and nephew's, including her brand new niece Ameilia.  Mark and Holly were there as well as their kids and family. Plus she saw her hometown friends. She turned around and lightly smacked Justin. "You planned this?" She said in disbelief. He nodded. She turned around and was met with the arms of all fifty guests. Even some of the Chargers were there. Joey was holding Lexi, looking like a natural family man next to AnnSophie. Sara's eyebrows raised at that.

As she mingled, Justin was never too far away from her. If she moved too far away he would find her. When he was next to her he had to touch her. Whether it was his arm around her or holding her hand as she led him to the food table.

He got a little uncomfortable as people congratulated him on his new contract. It guaranteed him and Sara to be in Los Angeles for at least five years. It was one of the things they discussed as a couple.

—-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Justin, this is your contract. Not mine." She laid in her trailer. It was late, but Justin had called her, updating her on the offer the Chargers gave him and his agent. It was five years and it would put him at one of the highest paid quarterbacks. Hell, he'd be making more money than her.

"And I've told you, this contract affects the both of us." He didn't want to say it over the phone, but his future plans involved her. Heck, when he and his agent sat down at the table with Tom and Dean he called Sara his future wife, raising eyebrows.

"Justin, it's sorta a no Brainer. Our careers are here, you love it here, your family is close."

"What about you? Wouldn't you like to be closer to your family? I could take a short deal-"

"Justin Patrick. Stop it. I love it here, and you do what's best for you."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday Dear Sara! Happy Birthday to you!" The crowd sang and Sara blew out the 2 and 7 candle on the green cake Justin was holding. Once she blew it out, she pulled Justin down for a quick kiss. Friends who videoed it posted it on social media, which circled all around social media.

Once the cake was cut  and served, desserts were eaten, photos were posted and an impromptu dance party went down, the party dwindled down to just Justin and Sara and  their immediate family. They watched as the parents were talking. "I was nervous they weren't going to get along." Justin admitted as they gathered all of the leftover food and gifts. (Justin told them to donate to charity in lieu of a gift.)

Sara laughed. "I bet my dad's setting a time for golf tomorrow." He laughed and truth be told she did worry about that a bit. She was glad when the Herbert brothers were joking and laughing with her sisters. She felt herself get misty eyed as she thought of Justin putting this together. "Baby what's wrong?" Justin looked at her with concern. She shook her head. "Nothings wrong. Everything is perfect."

And for the first time, it truly was. The whole night she was back and forth wrestling with her mind. It was something she should have done earlier. Justin was right, and with this party, all that he's done for her. This move seemed right, and natural.

"Justin?" He looked up from his task. "Yes?"

"Let's move in together."

She had never seen him smile so big.

—-------------------------------------------------------------

"Didn't expect to see you here." Joe laughed as he greeted Justin. He had just gotten out of video and workout, and he decided to bring Sara food while she was on set filming.

He always wondered what a professional set would be like. Granted, he filmed commercials, but this was an actual Hollywood set.

He hugged Joe. "Hey man, I thought I would surprise Sara. Sorry you got to spend your first anniversary on set."

Joe shrugged. "It's okay. Alicia is in Montana filming, so we will just celebrate next week. Come on, Sara is just finishing up a scene." He led Justin past the trailers and behind the director, where everyone else was watching. The scene took Justin by surprise.

Sara was laying in a puddle of red, which was definitely fake blood. She had a fake gunshot in her side, and she was gasping for breath. Then she coughed, and phony blood came spilling out of her mouth.

It looked so real, and if Justin didn't know any better it would have freaked him out. In the distance, someone he didn't recognize came running up to Sara's character. "I got you, I'm gonna call 911."

"CUT!" the director yelled, and Sara was helped up by the extra. They spoke for a few minutes, then walked over to the director. She smiled as she spotted Justin. Once everyone was done and they called break she went over to him. "Hi baby, I'd hug you but."

He laughed. "It's okay I get it." She nodded. "Come on, I got an hour before I got to be in hair and makeup for the next scene. He followed her to her trailer and went inside. It was a decent size, it had Sara's decorating all over it. It made him wonder how she would decorate his… well their house. "The movers came today, got most of the stuff." The main things, like her piano were coming, plus her music collection and the painting that Ben made for her were there. Most of her clothes were in his closet.

They had had a little argument about space, and Justin brought up maybe buying a house together. "I think we should look at some houses." He told her as he got out their lunch he picked up. Sara sighed. "I know, I love your house though."

"So I do, but we have to think long term." Sara raised her eyebrow and Justin laughed. "Come on, don't act like you haven't thought of the future." She got up from her vanity and straddled him on his chair. "I have, but I'm curious. What does the future look like for you Mr. Herbert?"

He smiled. "Well it would involve a bigger house, with some kids, and a dog."

"How many kids?" He shrugged. "I would like three. But it's up to you."

With a serious face she spoke. "I want as many kids as God blesses me with." His eyes widened. "Uh.."  She burst out laughing. "Jeez Justin, do you not hear my commentary watching those old Duggar shows?"

"I mean yeah, but still." She giggled. "I always said three or four like my own family. But who knows? I think three is a good number."

He smiled. "Three sounds good."

She got off his lap to eat as the time was going by fast. "I can call my realtor and we can start looking. Personally I'd like to stay in Irvine." She nodded. "I like it there too. I think I'll sell my house."

Justin's eyes widened in surprise. That was her first home she purchased. It was important to her. "Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Yes, I mean it does hold sentimental value. But it is small, and I'm ready to move on."

"Maybe I should keep my house?" Justin wondered out loud. She laughed. "I mean we don't have to decide anything yet. Looking for a house takes time."

They were interrupted by a knock at the trailer, and the door opened to see Sara's costar Jesse Lee Soffer come in police gear. "They are getting ready for the next scene." He looked at Justin and stuck his hand. "Hello, I'm Jesse." As she shook the older man's hand. Sara cut in. "He is the new guy on set. He actually is my love interest."

"Oh really?" Sara nodded, not paying attention to Justin's body demeanor. "Yeah he plays the detective on my case."

"So what exactly happened in that scene with you on the ground?" She laughed. "Oh so in that scene, I get robbed and when I try to chase the guy down, I get shot."

Jesse cut in. "I'm in the next scene with her and the main cast members. Speaking of, they want you to change into the next outfit." She nodded. "I have the hospital gown."

He nodded and left the trailer. Justin turned towards Sara. "Is this the guy you have sex scenes with?" She nodded."Just a few. Nothing too serious. We have an intimacy coordinator for that." He nodded and she laughed. "Are you jealous?"

"I mean a little." He admitted. "I know it's silly."

"Your feelings are validated. I promise, I've never caught feelings for any of my co stars. Sex scenes are uncomfortable to  know? Forty people are watching you and the director is all in your face saying you moved your head the wrong way." He laughed. "That is awkward."

She smiled. "Don't worry, I only want your dick." He laughed, then leaned closer to her. "Want to get some tonight?"

"I won't be home til the next day." He groaned and she laughed. "Sorry, we got one more late night scene and we are good for the week." She kissed him. "But I still have time, and we have this bed behind you." He turned around, not realizing there was in fact a bed in her trailer. He raised his eyebrow. "Oh?"

Once again, she straddled him. "I mean…. I've been really stressed." She began kissing his neck.

"Babe, as much as I am always down to have sex with you. I don't want prop blood on me." She looked down and huffed. "Right." They both began laughing as she got up.

"I have to go. I got therapy." He got up and gave Sara one last kiss. "I'll see you tomorrow night. I'll make sure the movers have the rest of the things."

She nodded. "Don't  forget to drop off the boxes in the corner. Those are all that I'm donating." He nodded. It was decided that Sara would donate all the stuff that Justin already had like utensils, plates, appliances. Things like that. She decided to donate it to the local shelters.

"Oh I can't wait to sleep in our bed." She moaned. Justin smiled, he loved the way it sounded. —-------------------------------------------------------------------

"This one has been on the market for about sixty days. It has six bedrooms and five and a half baths." Justin’s realtor, Seth looked down at his clipboard as Justin and Sara walked around what was supposed to be the living room. The house was gorgeous, but the downside was that there was no swimming pool.

As of right now, they were only looking. Justin was due to start training camp in a few weeks and Sara was wrapping up filming after zipping around the world promoting Oppenheimer and would be doing it again in a few months for Dune 2. It was probably the worst time to buy a house. But Justin and Sara's relationship was anything but typical.

The news broke that they were living together as soon as Sara listed her home for sale. In a surprising turn of events, AnnSophie decided to purchase it and turn it into a summer vacation home for her and Lexi when she was in Los Angeles filming. While it was emotional for Sara's, at least she could still come and see it whenever she liked, and she trusted the new owner to take care of her first big girl purchase.

The next step was to take Justin's house off of most public records. Her team took care of that, and for the most part there was no bothersome from neighbors or the community. Justin and Sara did have to deal with the occasional cameras when they were out and about together, but it didn't happen as often as Justin thought it would.

The start of living together was a little rocky at first. Sara was aware that Justin was neat and organized, but it was a different scenario living with him. He side eyed her for the littlest things. "Why don't you organize your products by your routine?" "Don't put food just anywhere, there is a system."

It was an adjustment, but it worked for them. Sara had him on a skincare routine. (Yes, that included sunscreen) and Justin had her eating healthy. He indulged in wine and some sweets. They both loved ice cream and made milkshakes. Sara worked out with Justin in his basement gym.

The results showed too, and people brought up her being on Ozempic to which Sara shut down when she had her interview with 'Elle' magazine.

"My boyfriend is an athlete, so I've joined him in the gym and changed my diet and I'm more consistent and it obviously shows. I always try to be open and honest with my fans, I promise I'm not taking anything for weight loss"

Any talk of the meds went out the window when the article hit stands. People were surprised that she brought up Justin, even though she didn't bring him up by name it was common knowledge who she was referring to.

The real test was them making an appearance together at Taylor Swift's closing show her Eras tour, there was also Justin's invitational. They discussed going together and being seen out in public and while they would never walk a red carpet together, they could be spotted out and about at high profile events

—----------------------------------------------------------------

Sara was talking with Holly, Carly, and Ashley as they waited for Justin to make his thank you speech. As he and his college buddies were golfing with teammates and pros she was helping out Holly making sure everything went off without a hitch.

It was important to her that she stayed out of the shine. It was about charity, and the kids that were in attendance.

Some people did speak with her, and their teens were big fans. She got to meet Justin's cousins, and they were so nice. One just had a baby, who had no issues passing him for her to hold and snuggle while the guys were talking

She noticed Justin staring at her.

Little did she know he was going crazy.

"Don't you get any ideas, Mitch told him as she caught his younger brother looking at his girlfriend kissing the baby. "Isabelle is already losing her mind. Had to remind her we needed to complete residency first."

Justin laughed. "No, I'm not thinking anything right now." That was a lie.

Mitch knew better. "But you know she's the one?"

Justin's smile said it all. —------------------------------------------------------------ "Oh darling, this dress would look gorgeous on you! And it's your color!" Pierpaolo Piccioli, the creative director of Valentino, was over their house with his team and racks of dresses and clothes. Sara had just signed on to be the face of the high end luxury brand, and in no time, Piccioli's team was over with Law with ready to wear pieces and drawings of custom designed handbags, couture items for Sara.

Justin was at meetings all afternoon, so he had no idea of the takeover when he walked into their house.There were clothes, shoes, makeup and handbags everywhere. It was his worst nightmare as a neat freak. A man he knew as Sara's stylist Law came up to him. "So sorry about this, but Pierpaolo insisted last minute his team come right now"

Justin must have looked confused, because Law laughed. "Men, he's the creative director of Valentino."

"Oh." All he knew was that it was expensive. Law grabbed his hand and Justin dropped his Nike bag. "Come, Sara will model the clothes for you and you can give your opinion." He allowed himself to be dragged into the open space where Sara was standing on a riser in front of large fold out mirrors, no doubt the Valentino team brought them. She turned towards him and smiled. "Hi baby! I'm sorry, we are almost done. How do I look?"

Justin smiled. She did look stunning, she was in a red ball gown. He walked over to her and kissed her. The writer smiled, talking notes for their design story. "You look beautiful." He admitted.

"Okay Sara! Me and Law have agreed on the last accessories for your shows! And -oh hello." A short slender man came into the room and stopped when he saw Justin. "And you must be Justin." He walked up to him and kissed both of his cheeks. "Ciao, Pierpaolo." Justin smiled nervously, he felt underdressed in his own house. "I'm Justin Herbert. Nice to meet you."

"I promise we are done, however." The man took a step back and walked around, studying Justin's height. "How tall are you?"

"6'6" He felt like he was being poked and prodded like it was the combine. "Do you know your measurements?"

"My what?" Sara giggled. "Paolo, he only wears Nike athletic clothes, owns two suits which he bought for college graduation"

The man tskked. "Simona. Get his measurements. Here- have Bendetta help Sara out of the dress and Justin you step on the platform."

Sara had to stifle a laugh as she stepped off.  Justin looked like a deer in headlights. "Uh I don't think that's necessary."

Paolo wasn't taking no for an answer. "I insist. You have the perfect body for fashion and you waste it." Hesitantly Justin stepped up, and Sara walked up to him. Despite high heels she looked like a child walking up to a monster. "Justin, you don't have to do this." She spoke softly. "Say the word, and I'll tell him to leave you alone."

He shrugged. "I mean, I don't want to insult him. Plus if I just do this. I'll get free clothes." Sara laughed. "Look at you thinking like a celebrity." She let herself be led away to change, while a woman began to measure his length and width on his body. "This isn't going to work, you need to be in your underwear." The woman spoke in a thick Italian accent.

"I beg your pardon?" She shook her head. "Do not worry, I've run plenty of men's fashion shows. I've seen more than surgeons." He laughed, and began taking off his clothes to only be in his boxers.

Paolo was taking down the measurements as Simona was rattling them off. He was asking Justin questions about his overall style which he was no help. He liked plain clothes. "Oh so we have a quiet luxury aesthetic. I love it. Oh I wish I had brought some men's pieces. Next time, but for now I'll send some ready to wear over."

"You don't have to, but I appreciate it." Sara came out of the room in her usual attire of sweats. "Can you get some custom tailored suits? Nothing fancy, just some casual and special occasion ones. "

"I'm on it." The gang packed up fast, and before Justin knew it, the team was out the door with one last kiss to Sara. He looked at her. "Wow." He admitted.

"It's something isn't it?" He nodded. "Sure you don't want to back out?" He laughed and kissed her.

"I'm not making that mistake again."

—---------------------------------------------------------------

"No nothing good starts in a getaway car."

Sara and Kristen screamed as they grasped onto each other as the intro for Getaway car played before Taylor began singing. They both couldn't believe it as she saved the best for last.

Behind them in the VIP booth Justin and David both looked at each other. Their girlfriends met last week, but they were already fast friends. Sara got last minute tickets to Taylor's Eras tour for them to join them.

Justin was a little uneasy, as he met the flashes of phone videos and cameras. They were watching every move that the couple made. Everyone commenting on the video of Sara going crazy to Cruel Summer and Style. There was a moment where Justin had Sara in his arms as she was singing 'Lover'

Ladies and Gentlemen will you please stand. With every guitar string star on my hand. I take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover.

As they jumped around and screamed the lyrics to getaway car Justin spoke with David as best as he could.

The song was over, and Justin handed Sara a bottle of water as she was sweating in the Los Angeles heat. "Thank you baby" she smiled.

Taylor spoke. "This song is for someone here tonight, who spoke into existence that one day she would experience this moment in this song. Well I hope this is it."

The song began playing, and Sara gasped.

I'm perfectly fine, I live on my own, I've made up my mind, I'm better off being alone.

Sara began singing the words she knew so well. She felt Justin come up behind her and wrap his arms around her. The bridge came on, which was her favorite, and then she turned around and looked into Justin's eyes

And all at once you are the one I have been waiting for King of my Heart Body and Soul

Justin smiled down at Sara and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. She smiled and turned back around to face the stage.

In a surprise, Justin spun her around, in a sea of 70,000 people he kissed her. He didn't care about the photos or the videos, the commentators or any of the articles that were going to come out that same night.

It was just them two.

------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning Justin woke up to get ready for his day. He was excited about the season, camp, and just everything to come. He looked over at Sara sleeping peacefully with the cats and he smiled. He did his usual routine, making sure to have her coffee set up so all she had to do was press the start button.

He pulled out of the garage and began to play songs connected to his bluetooth to his car 

a song came on, it was his favorite and it put him back to July 16th 2022

The dawn is breaking The light is shining through You're barely waken And I'm tangled up in you.

A/N: Guys, I am emotional writing this. I cannot thank you enough for all of the support messages and likes. I started this story with no direction and not even sure I was going to finish this yet here I am. Just because this story is over, doesnt mean you cannot ask me questions about their canon, other things. Also give me a little time to crank out the epilogues. I love you all and thank you!

[pearlypairings]

steve and robin with “put the icing down”? one of them is a birthday cake baking pro the other is a nightmatreeee (also happy birthday weekend lovebug!)

platonic steve & robin || angst, comfort, dynamic duo || 1788 words (lol oops)

A/N : uwu!!! I went crazy! this prompt made me drag out a lil angst (mostly because it coincided with that devastating behind the scenes photo of Dustin in front of Eddie's grave). I liked playing with the idea that Steve would end up being the more skilled baker with Robin being very who cares it's just a cake??? and he's like NO I need to FIX our friend! which is that's not at all realistic for this level of trauma, but his heart's in the right place so Robin goes along for the emotional ride.

"yesterday's" prompt

"Rob—Rob!" Steve pointed at the flour-coated, eggshell-laden hostage with a death grip on his mother's precious silver icing spatula. "Put. The Icing. DOWN." Her fingers pressed into the plasticky flesh of the piping bag in direct mutiny of his kitchen dictatorship. "What's got your panties all in a bunch? You've been a snobby baker all day. Isn't making a cake for someone supposed to be fun?"

Robin hovered dangerously over the three layered round cake propped up on the white ceramic cake stand. They'd been in the Harrington kitchen slaving for hours on each part, though Steve surprisingly wielded more skills than Robin in the baking department, especially for being such an athletic doofus. Turned out he learned the way of the oven from his mom, baking for charity fundraisers and the like when his dad was away on business. He hadn’t divulged any more details when Robin had asked how he learned all these recipes, and she didn’t have to ask.  She already knew the Harringtons were sticklers for high achievement and perfection, which clearly influenced Steve's eagle-eye approach to measuring the dry ingredients and the almost weirdly-scientific method in which he ordered the ingredients to be mixed together "for maximum moistness."  Gag. He wasn't even listening to how ridiculous he sounded and that definitely made her raise more than a few eyebrows as she stayed on the outskirts of his deliberate process.  "It needs to be perfect, not just slathered all over." Robin watched as he had to consciously refrain from finger combing his hair, his own hands covered in remnants of their baking “project.” That was his nervous tick, something gnawed at him more than just their favorite twerp’s birthday cake. "Isn't it the thought that counts?" she pushed, not yet retreating from the cake. "Yeah, well—Mrs. Henderson asked for my help, because she had to work or whatever. I don’t want to let her down...” He spoke softer, rocking back and forth heel to toe, toe to heel. Steve’s face softened, too, making Robin lean in, forcing herself to listen closely. The truth was coming. “And you know how bad Dustin has had it lately. I don’t have to remind you. He hasn't even mentioned his own birthday, just kept talking about Eddie’s last month."

Steve's hands planted themselves on his hips. A shadow glazed his eyes when he mentioned their younger friend struggling, like responsibility hung solely on his shoulders for Dustin's grief. As if somehow Steve was the only one who made life-altering decisions that day. Robin dropped her arms to her sides and with that, the frosting no longer threatened the pristine vanilla-chocolate-marble layers of tempting cake. She shrugged off the tiny mutiny with an apologetic look. "Thank you," he said as he leaned to one hip, cooling off his unusual, micro-managing attitude. He poked another toothpick through the top layer and kept his hand close to see if any warmth lingered to confirm it was ready to be iced.  She slid next to him focusing intently, probably mentally plotting out his icing to spatula strategy for the canvas of the cake, and she bumped gently into his hip to get his attention. Robin wasn’t gonna let him stay locked up in his head under all that stupid, silly hair to fend for himself. "It's not your fault, you know." His gaze sank for a moment from the counter to the floor, and a sigh fell from his lips heavy as an ocean anchor. His knuckles whitened along the edge of the island counter. "Ever since..." Steve trailed off, shaking his head low. They both knew what he meant: last year’s spring break, when Hawkins had the deadliest un-natural disaster. Nobody bounced back this time like the other tussles with the Upside Down, the wounds struck too deep for them not to be left bleeding out and a mess in the aftermath.  His grasp held onto the granite counter even tighter. "The kid saw things he shouldn't have. Well, they all did. But he was alone, he had to... had to find his own way back by himself, covered in......” His back bent to let his head hang even lower. “They shouldn't have been left out there in the open in the first place. I knew better than to let either of them be in that park." Robin's powdery hand gravitated to the arm he flexed out of anger or grief she wasn't sure. Lately it seemed like every conversation circled back to this idea that their failure had more to do with Steve than the impossibly terrifying, murderous interdimensional mutant with an insatiable vendetta against Hawkins. Like the death and maiming and earth splitting destruction that was so much bigger than their little Scooby Doo gang somehow circled solely around Steve Harrington. But she knew better than to try to rationalize right now when he was like this. He placed his hand on top of hers and squeezed it twice. Their well-practiced system to communicate that they're still present, mentally. She squeezed his bicep once more, looking up at him. "I just wanted him to have one good, perfect thing this year for himself, and I guess when his mom asked me for this favor, I did the typical Harrington family thing and made something simple into a whole….. shitty perfectionist production. I'm sorry, I was being an ass about it."

"Well, dingus, you're always an ass, but I can let this one time slide." Robin made that smile stretch to near goofy levels, the one that always made him roll his eyes, but smile back. Desperate times, desperate measures, etc. etc. “I think this cake will be Mrs. Henderson-approved when she sees how insanely tall it is. And I don’t know how we can help Dustin right now, but at least this can show him we’re here, you know, when he’s ready to talk?” He nodded, his shoulders relaxing a little to a lower slump. His hands stayed busy though, moving onto the big bowl of frosting to stir and fold its contents to re-fluff it or something, she guessed.  “None of us really came out unscathed, did we?” “No, don’t think anyone’s really okay. We’re just trying to survive with what’s left.” “Yeah…..yeah.” Steve conceded. The spatula kept folding and folding and folding until it made Robin dizzy to watch. She stopped him again before shrugging. “So let’s make a really good cake. We’re in control of that.” He offered her the first scoop to put on the heavenly smelling layers of cake before them; panic started to squeeze at her throat. That actually was a disaster waiting to happen with her luck lately with general coordination outside of navigating her trumpet. “Come on, you get first dibs for me being such a douche.” “Actually, I’ve rethought my stance. How about you ice the thing and I put the little Oreo crumbles and sprinkles on the edge. That seems more like my thing…..” She laughed at herself, snorting a little while she visualized the final product and its delivery. “I think, maybe, you should also be the one who carries it into the Henderson’s house, too. To be safe.” The last thing poor Steve needed was for them to finish this thing, in hopes of making him feel better, and then, she trips across their lawn and this fucking masterpiece cake goes flying up in the air only to become worm food. This was now a mission to help their friend remember that he mattered, too…. That they could remember their lost loved ones, honor them, and still celebrate their own lives. And in Steve’s world, that started with an expertly baked cake, so that's what they’ll do. He didn’t budge at first, but once Robin nodded him on his way, Steve started to gently ice the cake in precise swoops with the special spatula. She grabbed all the toppings to get them ready, organizing them in tiny bowls with tinier spoons she found in the Harrington specialized utensil drawer; she was sure they weren’t technically the correct tool, but like, they seemed perfect and Steve didn’t correct her when his eyes flicked her direction to note what she was doing.

When all was said and done, the center was devoid of the most important pronouncement. Robin eyed up her work on the sides. The sprinkles and crumbles probably could have looked cleaner if he did them, but they were at least evenly distributed and not too crazy in their wild array. “So, my handwriting is shit.” Steve said, smirking with a grip on the smallest piping bag of vibrant green-colored icing. He offered Robin the task at hand. “I know you’re handwriting isn’t shit.” “Uhh, don’t you think this part’s a little too important for me to fuck up? We already established I am not a natural at domestic work, it seems.” “If it’s bad, it’ll make Dustin laugh. If it’s good, he’ll be surprised that two idiots can make a cool cake. Win-win in my book.” “But, then you could try to do it.” Robin shrugged off the green threat. “I was being a control freak the whole time.” His face shifted, a tense knit in his brow. “Come on, this’ll at least make me feel like I didn’t ruin the whole day.” “Fine, fine, fine. I’ll do it, but if I hear one giggle out of you before we see Dustin, I WILL smash your face into the cake and tell Mrs. Henderson what happened. She’ll take my side, you know it.” He offered the tube again with a pleased grin. “Fair’s fair.”  “One more thing first.” Robin had been eyeing the silver bowl of extra white frosting. She’d controlled herself while he’d worked diligently on the cake, like he was training for the world championship of baking. But now the sight of it and the timing was too tempting. She stuck her finger for a big scoop and swiped it across his cheek in a sneak attack. His reaction was too slow, with a pitched-down “hey!” and a swat of his hand that missed and nearly got the cake instead. Robin took the decorative icing bag from his hand, took a step back and shrugged innocently. “It had to be done. For Dustin, of course.” Steve rolled his eyes, grabbing a dish towel to clean off the white streak from his face. “ I’ll get you back when you least expect it.” “I know, and I’ll count on it. Now, let me focus….should it be in Russian or English?” “Jesus, Robin, English obviously.” “Okay, okay. Good, because I don’t know if Russians celebrate birthdays or not…or how to spell Dustin in Cyrillic.”

[hargrove-mayfields]

It’s Harringrove Week! Billy’s Birthday Bonanza Edition! @harringroveweek

prompt: Time Rewind (note: this fic is basically a prequel to my other two pieces for Harringrove week! I II)

warnings: lots of discussion of pregnancy in this one, specifically a trans man carrying, so if that makes you uncomfy don’t read

——

In Steve’s lap, there’s a eight month old, and a scrapbook.

Baby Carol is going through her second sleep regression, the poor teary-eyed babe fighting against the tiredness in her body that she can’t beat. Right now she’s chewing on the plush blanket that covers her and Steve as they sit; He allows it only because it came straight out of the dryer to be extra warm on this chilly spring evening, and because he’s taken it out of her mouth about a dozen times already.

He’s been trying to keep her distracted by showing her pictures from his old memory albums, though a lot of the memories are painful to relive, he’s still glad to have them, and to be here now, with his two little girls and another baby on the way.

The walk through his past, a tactic he’s used multiple nights in a row, does good enough distracting her, except for the times when it doesn’t since this little lady is just so unpredictable, but because she’s in an okay mood currently and neither of them are any closer to sleeping, he'll open up another one.

The last two albums have been of his childhood, photos taken by relatives, the school, those kinds of things. This one though, this one is him in his teenaged glory days.

Steve takes baby Carol’s chubby little hand, and guides it to a particular photo, letting her crinkle the protective paper over top. It’s from the house party where his world changed, for what seemed like the worse, and then the better.

In his silly Tom Cruise costume, with his arm around Billy Hargrove in a worse terminator get-up, and a glint in his eye that actually wasn’t from the tears, but from the laughter Billy had gifted him that night.

“This right here, this was the night we met. A long, long time ago.”

The baby prods at the edges of the photo, squeaking out a tiny little giggle. Steve kisses the top of her head, where her striking red hair is starting to grow just a little, “Yeah, he looks funny in his costume, doesn’t he?”

Her response is to put her lips together and blow a spit bubble. Steve isn’t sure what that means, but he nods like he does. He’s learned from parent groups, the kids’ pediatrician, and one extremely helpful nanny Joyce that it’s best to talk to little ones like he can understand every word they try to say.

The next page of the book progresses his life’s storyline, and since Carol is grasping at the heart stickers standing up off of that one, Steve moves on with her.

The first picture is a well-worn Polaroid, that used to be kept in the sun visor of his car.

“It was only a week after that that we went on our first date.” He slips it out of the protective sheet and lets her see, only taking it back when his precious memories almost become a chew toy. Instead of making a big deal of it, he points to the next picture to distract her before the cranky baby can get upset about her current fascination being taken away. “Here. He took me to the diner at 3am for waffles! Who eats breakfast at 3am?”

Another bubbly giggle. Steve kisses her soft little face. She’s so smart already, better at understanding than even he feels he is sometimes. He can tell why this helps her baby brain grow, because she looks at him with all the love and adoration in those precious, light colored eyes as can fit in the whole wide world.

Just like Steve’s heart. And his heart for his past too.

He sighs a little bit, “They had the best food there. We moved away though because I wanted to see his hometown. The beaches and the boardwalks. See how it’s so sunny?”

For that part, he has to skip ahead a few pages, past first kisses and first holidays.

First days in the hospital.

It’s supposed to be good to talk to his little girl, but now Steve doesn’t think he can relive certain moments without crying. That can wait until she’s finally put down for her much needed sleep.

Instead, he just moves on. To some photos from his first trip back to Indiana, to reunite with his friends and family back there. Gas is too expensive to make it too much of a commonality to head home, but he tries when he can. Since Carol was born he hasn’t made a trip down, though he really should. Dustin at least deserves to meet his new niece.

From that trip, he finds one of his favorite photos he has.

Nobody knew it yet, but Carol's older sister was on the way when it was taken.

“But see? Even though we’re smiling, the backgrounds in Hawkins are all dark and dreary. And it rained all over us that day!”

A couple of pages later, on top of the picture of him with a cold from getting wet, there’d be pages upon pages of snapshots from the moment the pregnancy was announced, to the baby shower, to the day little Chrissy was born.

Steve catches an accidental quiver in his voice when he reflects on the photo on this page though. Stuck in the past.

The one of him kissing Billy Hargrove during a Hawkins thunderstorm.

“He always hated the rain. Did you see his silly hair? I always teased that he looked like a little poodle dog when it got frizzy like that.”

A tear runs down his cheek. Baby Carol is none the wiser of what that means, as she looks up at him, probably to see why he got quiet, when his voice was supposed to be putting her to sleep.

“He was the most gorgeous boy I’d ever seen.”

The photobook isn’t over, but he can’t take anymore. Blame first trimester emotions or something else, he shuts it, and a tear drops on the hard cover.

“Sometimes I miss those days.”

Steve composes himself, enough to wipe his tears away on his shirt sleeve, and readjust so he can set the book down on the floor and hold his baby closer to his chest. His heart is warmed when she snuggles right up to him and almost closes her eyes, finally trying again to get some sleep.

He whispers to her, “But I’m happier now that you’re here, baby girl.”

Then the nursery door opens up, softly so it doesn’t disturb the baby as she nods off slowly, and Steve instantly feels the rain clouds part.

It’s Billy, returning from getting their older daughter back to sleep after the high wailing from Carol woke her up. He asks softly, barely audible to accommodate the need for silence, “You two sweeties gossiping ‘bout me in here?”

Steve looks up at his fiancé, a loving smile adorned on his face, “A little bit.”

Kneeling in front of the chair, Billy kisses his little girl's head, finally getting her to close her eyes fully, and eventually sleep. Watching her, the gentle rise and fall of her chest, the pink flush of her pale face, Billy’s eyes shine and glimmer like he's meeting her for the first time all over again.

He jokes quietly, maybe to cover for the fact that they’ve both been tearing up, Steve about the photo book and Billy just from seeing his baby girl, “I bet she said she loved me, and that I’m super awesome.”

“I think she actually said- I’m the super best, but she does love both of us.” Steve corrects playfully, after being with Billy for years now, getting good at his teasing games.

It earns a little chuckle out of Billy, that makes baby Carol roll towards him, just a little bit, though her journey into sleep is undisturbed. That softens Billy up right to his core, and has him letting Steve win before their jokes even really started, too busy watching this little human they created in fascination, “Hm. I guess that works.”

Eventually, the chair starts being uncomfortable on Steve’s back, and Billy doesn’t feel great either on the floor anymore, so they carry Carol to her actual bassinet where she’s supposed to sleep, their breaths caught together as they see if being disconnected from her papa will wake her. But she doesn’t stir one bit, so they turn the baby monitor on and leave to their own room, where their older daughter is sleeping until they can finish turning the empty office space down the hall into an appropriate bedroom for their Chrissy, and for Carol too when they nursery has another little resident in six more months.

They crawl into bed, each on their own side because being in his third month of pregnancy with their third child means Steve is basically guaranteed to get up at least once in the night to get sick, or use the toilet, or something random his body decides it needs. Still, Billy reaches over and tucks some of Steve’s messy, needs-trimmed hair behind his ear.

It reminds Steve of something he wanted to say earlier, when they expressed their adoration for their baby but not one another. He declares in a voice that is both passionate and gentle, “Love you too by the way.”

Billy is sleepy, or more like exhausted after a long night trying to get the babies down for bed. That means he doesn’t respond with his words, knowing they’d probably come out in some unintelligible slurring, but rather, just scoots a tiny bit closer so he can extend his next and kiss Steve softly, to wordlessly reiterate his feelings too.

Steve knows that even if it meant getting to go back in time and relive those happy memories he’d reflected on, he would never ever trade this contentment away. Not for any price.

[irlcats-bracket]

Bracket 2 Round 2 Poll 1

Alucard & Ezekiel vs Summer

second post with propaganda (alucard and summer)

ALUCARD

he's orange, steals food if you're too slow to protect it, and he is full of love for his mommy and his mommy alone. alucard also loves to sing and feels like he's full of pudding.

PROPAGANDA

ALUCARD PROPAGANDA !!!

blep ^

behold my son............

more alu propaganda and fun facts!

he once ate his way through an entire pizza box solely to eat the cheese off of it! he has also ripped into a bag of doritos and cereal solely because he is a gremlin. we cant have ANY food outside of a bin or cabinet or he will find it and eat it. he can also open doors ???

he has two favorite places to sleep! one is that crappy basket on the right that i wove for a college class. the other is a cardboard house that his butt has nearly ripped in half!

despite being the younger brother, he's the more dominant one! he tries act like hes all tough when it comes to simon but its a hard facade to keep up when he keeps play-tackling alucard! they still love each other though; hence the spooning. it always makes us happy when they sleep together <3

whenever my fiance leaves the bed, alucard immediately gets up and runs to his spot. it feels like hes always just waiting for him to get up so he can come and spoon me

these photos are also making me consider if hes a shapeshifter because why does he look different in every picture

alucard is also a WORLD CLASS WRESTLER . he may be on the ground, but he knows exactly what hes doing. i dont think him and simon should be in the same weight class though 😳

these pictures are mostly just funny to me. whenever we're watching tv and he wants attention, he sits on top of our fLAT SCREEN TV??? he does this all the time and i ??? i dont know why

he also does pull-ups on the oven door apparently. it was off and nothing was hot; he just wanted the food smh.

EZEKIEL

His birthday is April Fools Day and that could not be more fitting. Despite being a little old man at 12 (almost 13!) years of age, he’s still very playful, energetic and affectionate. He regularly wakes submitter up because he wants cuddles. He also likes to play fetch and steal salty snacks.

PROPAGANDA

Propaganda for my baby boy, Ezekiel (he is not a baby, he is 13)

The last photo is from one of the many times he’s climbed between the couch and the wall so he can jump up and scare my brother

He’s a very good boy who comforts me during anxiety attacks. My family and I call him Ezie for short and he isn’t afraid of anything, be it fireworks, thunderstorms or vacuum cleaners. Other nicknames include “stinky old man,”“sneezy,” and “cheese weasel.” Because he also likes to steal cheese. He will take it right off your sandwich.

SUMMER

She’s a Siberian, and she’s submitter's emotional support animal she’s such a good baby and they would kill for her! She has a whole host of chronic health issues but she’s handling it like a trooper. Beloved by all friends family and vet staff she deserves the world!!

PROPAGANA

propaganda post 2

[luciehercndale]

True Love Stories Never Have Endings

A belated birthday gift for @emmcarstairs 💜 I tried to put your most favorite ships together in a fan fiction, I hope you like it!

London, Spring 2015

Emma sat on the new parquet of the living room at Blackthorn Hall, sifting through a couple of cream-colored cardboard boxes. She and Julian found them in a closet in the only part of the house that they hadn’t renovated yet, the one dating from the 60’s. Emma wasn’t sure why they’d left that one for last. Perhaps Julian had foresighted that they’d find something valuable in there.

“There are a lot of personal belongings in this wing,” she noticed when they started checking the cupboards and the drawers. “I wonder who lived here? Do you have any idea?”

“I really don’t,” Julian shrugged. “Perhaps a Blackthorn?” he offered, but he thought he would have known. 

“Could your father and uncle might’ve lived here?” Emma wondered, but Julian quickly shook his head. She went back to her box, and found a tiny one with gray stripes on it. Inside, there were a bunch of black and white photographs with the name of the person pictured and the date on the back. In most of the photos there were little kids, three boys and a girl. They looked happy, and they seemed familiar even though they lived a century earlier. “Teddy, Kitty, Willy, Robby,” Emma said out loud, “they were Blackthorns.”

“Blackthorns who named all their children with names ending in -y,” Julian came closer to look at the photos. “I guess it’s a family tradition to follow a theme,” he laughed, thinking about his own family. “Perhaps they inspired the next generations.” He continued his search until he found a box made of wood in one of the drawers of the closet. Some of the blue velvet covering it was coming off, but it was still in good condition. There was a golden inscription on the top, with the Blackthorn family symbol underneath. “L&J, Spring 1908. True Love Stories Never Have Endings.” 

“Wow, this looks old. My parents used to have one too, it belonged to my grandma,” Emma said, suddenly interested in what Julian was looking at. “Who are L&J?”

“Blackthorns?” Julian offered with a shrug, pointing to the circle of thorns on the velvet. “I believe it was them,” he continued after opening the box, where he found a few pictures. The couple pictured could’ve been around their age. “It must have been their wedding day, considering the poses. The girl has a bouquet and this looks like wedding attire, I don’t know,” he showed it to Emma. 

“Lucie and Jesse Blackthorn, May 13, 1908. Our wedding day. You’re right,” Emma read aloud. “There’s even a tiny heart drawn here, how cute,” she smiled. “They must’ve been your great-great-great grandparents, I guess? They look a lot like you and your siblings” she observed the picture better. “I think I remember this guy from one of the portraits at the Los Angeles Institute.”

“I believe he is Rupert’s son,” he said. “They look so much like Livvy and Ty when they were little children,” Julian continued with a faraway expression, pointing a finger on the locket around the girl’s neck. It was the same one Julian had given to Livvy and that now Ty kept. “They must be the reason the Blackthorn family didn’t cease to exist after Rupert died.”

“Indeed,” Emma covered his hand with hers. “And that you’re here, with me, today,” she said lovingly, pressing her lips on his. “So thank you, Lucie and Jesse Blackthorn?”

“We should keep these photographs and memories in a safe place,” Julian nodded. “These are family heirlooms, like the locket,” he showed the two rings he found inside to Emma. They had the same inscription as the top of the box. “I don’t want them to be lost in this ruckus.”

“Smart idea,” she agreed. “Let’s see what more we have here, then.”

London, Spring 1908

It was the day before her much awaited marriage with Jesse, and Lucie was too busy worrying about her vows. Not only the vows she would exchange during the ceremony, but also the ones she would say in front of the guests before the wedding feast. She knew she could’ve just thanked everyone for being there, but as usual, she’d been verbose, as Cordelia had defined her speech. “You need to be more concise, the guests would be starving once you’re done,” she’d suggested. She was probably right, but she still couldn’t help but write half a page of words of affection and gratitude towards her future husband and her guests. They would understand. 

Jesse couldn’t even sit down to eat dinner the evening before the wedding. He asked his aunt Cecily and uncle Gabriel to spend the night at their house in Bedford street. “It’s tradition that I am not to see Lucie the day before the wedding,” he explained. “Dear, traditions are made to be broken,” Cecily said. “You’re just like your uncle Gabriel,” she laughed, and told him that they had been in a similar living arrangement before they got married, and he had done the same. “I went to my brother’s house the night before our wedding,” uncle Gabriel started, and they spent the remainder of the time talking about past memories, trying to ease Jesse’s anxiety. 

Neither he or Lucie could sleep that night, but at least it was all a blur after preparations started early in the morning. Lucie could barely remember her mother and her friends helping her with her hair and dress, before she set for the sanctuary. Nor Jesse could recall the embarrassment he felt realizing his palms were sweaty when he caught sight of the girl he loved walking down the aisle. Lucie didn’t forget her vows, while Jesse had a brief lapse of memory but he quickly remembered the words he had to say. “I’m sorry for earlier,” he told Lucie when they were taking pictures after the ceremony ended. “I was totally dumbstruck,” he confessed shyly.

“No need to apologize,” she muttered with a grin, still blushing. “We made it through, that’s what matters the most, right? ”

“No talking until we take at least five pictures,” said the vampire photographer her father hired. “It takes a few minutes to process these, so stay still and smile for the camera! Don’t you want your descendants to remember you?”

“Of course we do,” Jesse told the guy with a pleasant smile, “but let me kiss my wife before we start.” He glanced at Lucie, and she waited expectantly to be kissed. 

The vampire had to cough to make them stop. “Shadowhunters in love, the things I abhor the most,” he muttered, “I wonder why I accepted this job!”

“To make a living?” Lucie chanced, but the vampire rolled his eyes. “I apologize, that was bad. Please, we’ll behave. We’re eager to have our pictures taken,” she said excitedly. 

The vampire shook his head and muttered how Shadowhunter's sense of humor was of poor taste, but he still took their wedding pictures, preserving their memory to this day.

So, thank you Emma and Julian for remembering your Blackthorn ancestors.

[foragain]

1997. the year kate winslet became rose. tamagotchi hit shelves in the united states. princess diana had her light snuffed by greed. i was born.

i was born in november, a day before thanksgiving. being a baby in 1997 means i’d missed the console wars by a few years, and the rivalry between sega and nintendo was nothing but a story i’d go on to read via forums in the early 2000’s. despite that, i still led a crusade against my best friend in middle school — who was better? sonic or mario?

sonic, i’d say, because he was my favorite character at the time. i’d spent plenty of lazy summer afternoons playing sonic heroes at my cousin’s house to justify it, and mario never caught my interest. my friend said the same, just in the tune of red instead of blue. we’d argue our case against one another to a jury of unwilling participants at lunch, trying to persuade them to join our respective sides. none of the other members of our group of misfits played video games — passingly enjoyed them, sure, but never played — and so the importance of “sonic vs. mario” was lost to them. my best friend, lauren and i, kept on.

lauren loved mario the same way she loved all nintendo games. when the wii came out in 2006, she was the first in our friend group to get one, singing it’s praises throughout the hallways of our school after holiday break. the television in the living room of her house was broken, so the console earned a temporary spot in her mother’s room. we’d all collate in there, gathered on a bed with indentation on only one side, whiling away the hours with subspace emissary. while i loved video games, i wasn’t good at them yet; lauren would remind me to tie the strap around my wrist when holding the wiimote, lest it go flying (which it did. several times.)

mario’s favorite food is spaghetti, so lauren’s favorite food was spaghetti. one day in october, near her birthday, our whole friend group was invited to her house for dinner — a “spaghetti dinner”. i remember thinking it sounded fancy. what it was, really, was two pots on a stove (pasta and sauce) for self serve. a choice of apple juice or water. a collection of middle schoolers sitting at an old dining table, eating pasta together and talking about super smash bros. brawl, and higurashi, and youtube poops and sonic vs. mario. i told lauren that sonic was better because he was faster. she threw a meatball at my face.

when i graduated from grade six to seven, i became more interested in books instead of video games. i’d bring one with me to class every day, sometimes two, and read once i finished my course work. none of my other friends were as into reading and writing as i was, so i accepted my fate and found like-minded people on websites like gaiaonline instead. lauren and i had forgotten about our personal war. our friend group was satisfied to hear the conclusion to sonic vs. mario. it was the end of an era.

lauren came to lunch one day, after we’d graduated from grade six to seven, and handed me a piece of paper. her grin was as wide as a canyon — “it’s for you!” she said. printer paper, with a date on the bottom and a webpage url at the top. to the left, small, was a stock photo of sonic from super smash bros. brawl. to the right, lauren’s handwriting; to the bestest friend in the whole world! p.s, sonic rules!

2023. my husband and i made spaghetti the other night, and i thought about that spaghetti dinner in october. i thought about lauren. i thought about that piece of paper, tired and worn from the years, still tucked away safe in my office. lauren and i don’t talk anymore. i know she went to university. has her own apartment. a girlfriend, last i heard.

she may not think sonic rules anymore, and we may not talk, but that moment is still here in my home. it’s still in my heart, because there is no before and after what love is.

anyways. i love spaghetti. and i love mario games.

[fenimores-book-nook]

day 18 // a lil' life update :)

dates written : January 16th/17th - 2024, Tuesday/Wednesday

Well! It has been quite a while since I last wrote, hasn't it? Exactly two weeks, dang. So, I thought about just doing more of a life update for this one. ;) Which will probably, basically still be about self focusing.

!! WARNING !! I will be using a lot of photos. ;)))

Well, at the start of the month I had some friend hand outs I went to. My bestie since grade school and I hung out together finally, we don't see each other too often since she's still in school; senior year of high school, which is a very busy year. Or it was for me.

One of our favorite things to do that we've done since we became friends and "hangouts" were a thing for us, is dressing up to different, fun themes! So we did that again, bringing back old memories. :,) The theme above is: Going to a 1882 French Play. Very specific, I know. But that makes it more fun.

I had two more friend hangouts after, one was with some of my "once in a while friends." Like the friends you get together with once in a while. One of my close friends is involved in those hangouts, though, which I'm very grateful for since at times I feel like I don't completely fit with the group. But she helps. :) And I'm not saying my other friends are bad, they aren't, and I do like seeing them every now and then.

Speaking of that one close friend I mentioned:

Okay, okay, let me give context. At this group hangout, it was with my closer friends, for one friend's 19th birthday. One of the games we played was called "Stir the Pot." Which is a fun game, but it can be a little iffy sometimes. You just gotta remember it's a game. But me and another friend didn't want to be too mean, so we played more mellow cards.

Now, the photo context: one friend got this card to give to someone and during their time of debating who to give it to, Zainah and I (the one in the white dress) were being incredibly silly and laughing while Zainah was trying to pour some coca-cola into a cup. So the card ended up going to both of us which was probably the core highlight of the night, because we both absolutely lost it together.

Getting into the topic of all things books-of course-I got another bookshelf! I currently have three, but one of them is a very small one, and the other one is about half the size of the one in the photo, with less shelf room. So obviously, I need more book space. AND- I got this one for free! It used to be from someone my family knew that she was going to throw out. So with the help of my brother and virtual encouragement of my sister, we spent a day fixing it up and putting it in my room! The next day I shelved books and decorated it. :)

One of the books I'm making my way through is Live by Sadie Robertson. It's a really amazing book for me to read right now, it's helping with my faith and also gives me comfort! I really like Sadie's style of writing, so I'm enjoying this one. :) I have also been doing a study in Psalm too, I read at least one chapter a day, or at least, I try to. Focusing on myself has really helped me focus on my relationship with God too. It's been a rough time in the past, but it's better now. <3

Before I get too invested in talking more about my self focusing journey, some last minute things: it has been very cold here in good ol' Kansas. We've been getting a lot of snow and when, yes, it is so pretty and I love snow, I am SO ready for spring weather. But a cool thing that I was able to do, because it was so cold, is walk on a frozen lake! (or pond, my park ranger brother would know, haha) My parents and I visited my brother at his work where he's a park ranger and my brother and I walked along the edge of the lake! It was so cool to see all the frozen things beneath me. The little feather lookin' things on top of the water are frozen leaves! Even if it was freezing and I definitely should've worn boots, it was beautiful.

The other day, my mom and I went to one of our small town coffee shops; I can't remember exactly what drink I got but it was super good. I've come to really love that place and their drinks. :) When we got back home, Mom made a pot of tea and it was just a nice cozy day. It had started to snow and became very windy on the way home, so I'm glad we left when we did. It was a good day to just chill and hang out with my mom. :) <3

Back to some *new-ish* self focusing/discovery things!

(I hope you like my very well thought out title) ;p

So, a little bit of backstory: some people might remember, if you read my posts when I first joined tumblr, I would write some things about the Aspec/AroAce* community. Those posts are not up anymore, the reason being is that I stopped identifying as AroAce. But what I didn't realize until now is the real reason why I stopped identifying as AroAce. The reason I had thought why I stopped is, that I felt like I could/did (wanted to) experience romantic or sexual attraction. So, really, I was like: I was wrong (I was sad), I want a romantic relationship (do you, though? really think about it bro). I left the label behind, not wanting anything to do with it. I wanted to feel those attractions and when I thought about how I couldn't, I would feel really sad about it. How I would end up alone (which is not a bad thing) and my friends would all leave me behind to live lives with their romantic partners (my overthinking brain was telling me these things). I felt extremely lonely. That's when society's ideas and views on the Aspec community/labels started contorting my own. I started believing society's thoughts on it and thought that I just needed to stop being sad and how to do that was to ditch the AroAce label. (which, in some cases/for some people, ditching labels helps, but for me, labels can help me understand who I am and why I feel/think the way that I do)

Little did I know that the reason why I felt so sad every time I thought about being AroAce wasn't because I'm AroAce, but because of what society says about the Aspec community. I let those false ideas and thoughts into my head when I should've been kicking them to the curb. BUT! We all learn from mistakes and honestly, I think that it wasn't a complete mistake for me to stop identifying as AroAce. Because NOW, I have a much better understanding of myself and my identity, and some of it comes from me attempting to hide who I really am back then. (I say "back then," but it was really only a couple months ago)

Of course, I'm still working through my self acceptance and self discovery, but really, me realizing that I'm Aspec-again-couldn't come at a better time! It has helped me focus more on myself as well as help me discover more about myself. :) Earlier this week I had an amazing realization that God's timing really is perfect. If I wouldn't have been thinking about my Aspec identity, I probably would be struggling more to focus on myself. So it works out great!

*Aromantic Asexual - a person does not experience, or rarely experiences romantic or sexual attraction. There are many different kinds of AroAce and countless ways on how to be AroAce, and none of them are wrong! It just depends on the person and how they identify with their own Aspec identity. (Aspec definition in photo above)

(AroAce art from pinterest) The AroAce flag are those colors, if you didn't know. ;) (though, there are many different versions of the flag)

As you might've already gathered, I used to identify as "AroAce," now, I think I prefer "Aspec." I feel like Aspec is more broad than what AroAce is, in my own opinion. Honestly? I don't know exactly where I land on the Aromantic Asexual spectrum. And that's okay! I'm actually okay with that now. I'm fine with just doing my own research at my own pace, wanting to think about my Aspec identity as much as I want to. :) I had so much trouble accepting and loving my Aspec identity before and I'm not going to let that happen again. If later down the road, I decide it isn't a label for me, then okay! IDENTITY IS FLUID! Which can be very frustrating at times, but it's a beautiful thing too. :)

And now you see why I wanted to wait until the end to talk about my self focusing things: I have a LOT to say. So, don't be surprised if I have more Aspec-focused posts coming out! The world needs more Aspec representation!! Plus, I like writing about it. ;)

One last photo of my doggo, Charlie who got a haircut the other day and my mom brought him to our shop. He approves. ;)

I hope you enjoyed my life update! And if you didn't, well, no offense, but I don't really care. I do these writings for myself because I enjoy doing them. :)

And, if you are a fellow Aspec, remember that there is a place for you in this world! It is a wonderful and beautiful thing to be a part of this community. You and how you feel are valid, no matter who you are or how you identify.

Until next time,

Thalia <3

[fighterkimburgess]

This Wasn’t Supposed to Happen Chapter 22 - Epilogue

Summary: At Andy’s second birthday party Sylvie and Kelly share their happiness. Series Masterlist here

Words: 869

Warnings: none

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When the buzzer on the condo went Sylvie leaned back, frustration clear on her face.

“It’s ok, I’ll get it. Finish feeding Matt.” Kelly pushed a kiss to the top of her head as he went past, Andy holding his hand.

“Happy birthday baby!” Her mom and dad were the first at the door, Violet and Kevin just behind them to celebrate Andy’s second birthday. When they’d decided to do a birthday party for Andy she’d thought it’d be a disaster, but he deserved a day to himself.

Matt was born right on his due date, a birth that went off without a hitch with Kelly there to cut the cord. Their family had expanded, Andy getting used to the baby better than either of his parents had expected.

But the previous night, after they’d come home from the courthouse with Andy’s adoption confirmed, Kelly had gotten down on one knee with Sylvie’s original wedding ring to ask her to marry him.

She’d hidden the ring in the back of her nightstand, a memory that she didn’t know if she wanted to remember. But he’d found it when getting something for her, and his words when he proposed would never be forgotten.

“It’s probably bad karma to use a second hand ring but I know this means as much to you as it does to me. I love you, and I love our sons. I love this family that we’ve built together. I know that it’s not exactly the way we expected things to go from that night in Vegas, but I can’t imagine my life without you. Will you please marry me?” It was cleaned and in a new ring box, the shiny rose gold and silver ring in his hand. It was much plainer than a normal engagement ring, but for her it was perfect.

“Yes. It would always be yes.” She’d kissed him deeply, holding him close and remembering that this time was for keeps.

“Can I see my youngest grandson?” Monica was straight over to Sylvie, arms out to reach for Matt. Sylvie just smiled at her mom, indicating to the bottle in her hand but it was no match for Monica who lifted him without skipping a beat in the feeding. She’d settled on the couch with the baby in her arms when she spotted the glint of metal on Sylvie’s hand.

“Is that…?” She trailed off, the others gathering around at Monica’s words. Kelly slipped an arm around her waist, pulling her close with a wry smile.

“I asked Sylvie to marry me last night, and she said yes.” It was cheers and celebration before the party truly got underway, their friends from 51 and outside of work - the few there were - there with them. 

Andy ran semi wild with Terrance and Kenny, the two older boys pulling him along and playing. He got gifts from everyone, “tank yewww” drawled as he took them and handed them over to one of his parents. When Christie and Antonio arrived they hugged him almost as tightly as Kelly and Sylvie did before speaking to them, nods and smiles between the four adults.

They’d explained to Andy that he was adopted, but he didn’t fully understand it yet. A photo of Matt and Gabby on their wedding day was on the wall, beside Kelly and Sylvie with Andy. His birth parents would never be forgotten, and Sylvie knew they’d be proud of who he was becoming. They’d stepped up and he would always know that he had two sets of parents who loved him.

It was when she was putting out the cake that her ring was spotted by the rest of the guests, sly comments and hugs to her and Kelly. They sang happy birthday to Andy, Matt in her arms as the four got in for a picture with a grinning toddler. It was one of the pictures that would end up on their wall, their little family there happy and healthy and whole.

That night, after a sugar high two year old was in bed and they were curled up on the couch with Matt against her chest, Sylvie cuddled into Kelly’s shoulder.

“I love you,” she murmured, a kiss his initial response.

“I love you too. I’m sorry for how I acted when you first joined 51, you didn’t deserve it.”

“You’ve nothing to be sorry for.” She turned around to look into the eyes of her fiancé, the father of her kids, the same eyes she saw in their youngest every day. “Us? This family? This wasn’t supposed to happen. But now it has, and we get to live together and be happy. I’m going to choose to be happy.”

“That sounds pretty perfect. We’ll choose to be happy together.”

He took her left hand, raising it to his lips and pressing a kiss to the cool metal of her ring. “This is back where it belongs.”

“And yours is going back soon too.”

They sat there quietly, light snuffles from Matt the only thing to break the silence, as Sylvie tried counting all her blessings. But soon she wasn’t able to keep count, smiling as she leaned back and relaxed.